Food is the prime factor that promotes the welfare of our health.

The energy that we have to go about our daily activities is derived from the food we eat. When the food we eat is more or when it is too less, it can result in diseases. It is imperative for us to have a harmonious blend when it comes to our bodies, food, and sports and other physical activities.

These are the times when our food habits have been challenged: the fast food scenario has led to unhealthy food choices; playing a big role in turning us into sick patients. These bad habits are to be discarded and we should adopt a healthy diet and appropriate eating pattern.

Bad eating habits lead us onto lots of diseases. There are several reasons why this happens. People move about very less nowadays. Yet the amount they eat has not become less. Moreover the food we eat is not balanced.

Control of food intake is vital for diabetic care. What is commonly seen is that people have a casual attitude: a “let it be”, “we eat what we need; let it be” we’ll face it when it happens.

They even dismiss others who try to eat healthy. This is mainly because such people do not have no knowledge about food or the nutrients in it, nor do they have any idea of what a person can eat.

Remember it is important that we know

Diabetes and dietary pattern

The dietary pattern of the diabetics should be same as that of other members of the family .there is no need to separately cook their foods. Dietary pattern of the diabetic patient should be healthy and well balanced and that is suitable for other members also.

The meal pattern of the diabetic patient should be such that it controls diabetes and other lifestyle diseases

How important is a balanced diet?

Healthy Eating

If you follow a healthy eating pattern it is possible to prevent lifestyle diseases.

To have a healthy diet we need to give importance to 6 factors:

The time at which you eat

We should try to eat at the same time every day. When we do not follow this routine it affects our health adversely. Try to set aside a fixed time every day taking into consideration your daily routine and other household requirements and duties. Do stick to that routine. Do not skip breakfast. It is common even among children to neglect their breakfast. This has a chance of negatively affecting their studies and even their concentration!

The way we eat

The quantity we eat

It is possible to determine the amount of food we need when we consider our age, height, weight, type of work, and if we are regular in sports and any physical activity. We should eat according to that. The food that we love and find hard to give up should be consumed in small quantities.

If there is any food we love so much that we find it hard to give up, we should try to eat very small quantities of it

The way we cook

There are lots of changes in the way we cook when compared to earlier time. If we do not adopt the proper way to cook, there is not much use even if we choose the right food ingredients. The wrong cooking method will lead to the loss of nutrients in the food

Be sure of the following while cooking:

Is your diet nutritious?

When we choose our food it is important to think of whether it will give us proper nutrition. Often we fall sick due to the lack of proper nutrition that protects the body against illness.

Balanced diet

A balanced diet is a diet where there is a proper balance in the choice and use of food grains, meat, fat, vegetables, fibre, and water. A balanced and sound diet will help in maintaining our health and preventing diseases

If you suffer from diabetes you should never fast. It is not good for a diabetic to avoid eating, or to skip a meal

Calorie

This is a term that we often hear when we talk about food. What is a calorie?

A calorie is the measure of energy that the body gets from food. When one gram of food is digested the energy that is released is what we call calorie.

How much a person eats a day depends on how much of calories he requires. The amount of calories the individual needs depends on factors like age, weight, height, level of activity and exercise, and status of health. A diet catering to these factors is advised.

It is good if you approach your doctor or a dietician for a suitable diet to be prescribed. A total turnaround in your diet pattern is not what is suggested; rather a diet which considers existing eating habits and preferences; and designed in a manner where a few alterations can bring about healthy changes. What we need is a diet which gives us enough nutrients .

Food Pyramid

This is a food pyramid. What you need less of appears on the top. The essential food is on the lowest rung of the pyramid. As you go lower down the pyramid you spot the food which gives you the best in terms of nutrients

Calorie Count

Food –cooked and snacks

Nutrition through Food

Nutritious food is necessary for the well-being of the body; for it to perform well and for energy and health. We should take food that has all the needed nutrients in the right amount.

Grains/ rice; Fat; Meat; Vitamins; Vegetables/minerals

Grains

While having these remember not to remove the bran. Boiling rice repeatedly in water and throwing the water away is not good. Among rice, parboiled rice and wholegrain wheat (where the bran is not removed) are good. However wheat with all the bran removed and polished; i.e. maida, is of no value at all

Beans

All the different types of beans are good. When we eat we tend to remove the outer skin of lentils (kadala); this is not advisable as the skin contains lots of vitamins. When we sprout beans to eat them it enhances the protein content. Try to include a bean–food at least in one of your meals daily

Fish, Meat, Eggs

Do include fish in your daily diet. Fish contains omega fatty acid which helps to protect the heart. The following types of fish may be included in your diet: Sardines(Mathi), Mackerel( Ayala), Tuna(Choora)

Meat can be had once or twice a week. Have mutton in limited quantity as the saturated fat content is not good for the heart. The level of cholesterol in the yellow of eggs is high. Boiled eggs are good for growing children; on alternate days it is good to give them eggs. Egg whites can be had daily. Adults should limit their consumption of eggs to once or twice a week. Frying and deep frying any of these is not recommended at all

Vegetables, greens, fruits

These provide the body with essential substances: Fibre, vitamins, minerals,. All these constitute to make vegetables a necessary part of your daily life. These are times when we do not see much of these vegetables around. Yet do try to include greens in your diet for at least three days a week. Fruits should be included in daily diet.

Milk, milk products

These have lots of proteins in them; and should be included in a growing child’s diet. However, adults need these dairy products only in limited quantities

Sugar, Fat

These are to be avoided as far as possible; and consumed in very limited amounts, for all age groups. Keralites are prone to lifestyle diseases; and such food should be taken in restricted quantities. This habit needs to be introduced from childhood

Fibres

Dietary fibre refers to the food that the body does not digest

There are two major types, depending on their ability to dissolve in water.

Advantages of Fibre

It helps to regulate the glucose in blood. It serves to regulate the cholesterol content in blood. And helps the smooth flow of food to the digestive tracks.

The fibre that does not dissolve in blood helps to ease constipation; and the fibre that dissolves in blood protects against heart diseases, diabetes, obesity and unhealthy cholesterol levels.

Food with high fibre

Diabetics remember when you are eating :

Glycaemic Index – GI

Glycaemic Index is an indicator of the rise in the level of glucose in blood after taking in a measured quantity of food. Food is ranked according to this. On consuming food with a high glycaemic content the level of glucose in blood rises. Diabetics should consume food with low glycaemic content.

GI levels of some food:

Model Plate

Many of us are a bit unsure when we talk about dieting ( e.g 1 cup/katori, 2 ladles, 2 spoons ). To clear this confusion a Model Plate helps. The model plate is a simple tool to guide us in deciding what we should choose and how much we should consume.

With regard to a diabetic this model plate is ideal:

A quarter of your plate should be filled with grains – eg : rice/ chappathi/ dosa etc.

Protein should make up the other quarter – eg : fish/ beans/ chicken. Once a week chicken, and on those days do not take fish

The other quarter should have cooked vegetables

The remaining quarter to be filled with salads – cucumber, carrot, tomato, onion

A small cup/katori of curd, or a glass of buttermilk

And gravy – eg,rasam, morukari, pulishheri etc.

1500 Calorie Diet

08.30 am Breakfast : Any one of the below

11.30 am Any one of the below

Tea / Buttermilk / Lemon juice

01.00 pm Lunch

04.00 pm Tea

Biscuit – 2 / Robesta – 1 / Guava -1

08.00 pm Supper

Zimbabwe Hand Jive

Our palms are a good means to know how much we should eat. They help us to realise the measure we can adopt; besides being the one trustworthy tool we always have with us to have an idea of the right quantity to consume. This hand measure has been called the Zimbabwe Hand Jive as it is based on a measure used in Zimbabwe.

Rice

Two measures of a closed fist

Protein

As much as your palm can hold

Vegetables

as much as two palms can hold

Oil and Fat

A Thumb measure

Mental stress in these days is increasing for all human beings. This affects our lives in a bad manner and increases our chances to contrive all sorts of diseases. Our biggest wealth is good health. We need to have a way of living that enhances our ability to love, be happy and live a healthy and satisfying life. Yoga helps us achieve this.

Yoga helps us with these practices:

Yogasanas, Pranayama, Yoganidra, Meditation

Health is the biggest wealth. Mental stress affects diabetics in a bad way. Try to avoid confrontations of any kind, and be calm and happy. Yoga helps to calm our minds to a great extent. Yoga and meditation help to calm our minds. Yoga nidra soothes our muscles and calms our thoughts. All this adds to the body harmony

The practice of yoga is beneficial to children: it calms them, removes laziness, tackles loss of memory, removes restlessness, and improves their self-confidence

Benefits

Mental Stress

We are living in the age of globalisation. This has brought in its wake increasing consumerism and competitive trends which in turn has resulted in changes in social behaviour: in our relationships with each other. Earlier we would have an easy approach towards day-to-day problems. Nowadays we adopt a more intensive ‘fight or flight’ approach. A do or die attitude is what we have when confronted with problems. Either fight or flee! Such an approach does harm to our bodies.

There are two different nerve systems in our bodies

Sympathetic system

These sense are aroused when we are confronted with a harmful situation. The body releases some hormones; which will increase our heartbeat, breathing, level of sugar in blood. This will then lead to a rush of oxygen, sugar, glucose to all parts of the body and renders the body into a tense state. Prepare to fight or flee, it prepares the body into a state anticipating a battle. The level of cholesterol increases and the arteries become narrow. All these harm the body. Yet when in an emergency this is the right response; this is necessary.

Para-sympathetic system

After the crisis and when the body has overcome the danger, it returns to the normal state. The para-sympathetic nerves gets active. This action is in the opposite manner. It reduces heartbeat, breathing goes down, the sugar in the blood goes down. It acts in such a way as to reduce the wounds which came about when the sympathetic nerves were aroused and hormones were released. Gradually the body returns to its earlier state.

Repetitive stress injury

The challenges that people have to face in these modern times are not life-threatening. The pressures we face are related to work issues, problems that crop up on a personal and social level; conflicts of a modern lifestyle and the real world are some of the challenges we face.

However our body does not know that; and it reacts in the manner which it is familiar with. When in a confrontation it goes into an aroused state. In the modern world people go through this state of confrontation and crisis almost all the time. There is hardly any time to relax. And so the body is always in this state of active arousal. This leads to wounding the body in several ways. This is what is known as repetitive stress injury.

Diseases that happen due to mental stress:

Due to the continuous performance of the sympathetic system the blood sugar rises. Diabetes is the likely result. Heartbeat will rise, and so will the blood pressure. These will then in turn affect the kidneys

Techno Stress

Constant interaction with computers and other modern technological inventions leads to tension. This is what is known as ‘Techno Stress’. Hours of constant sitting and working and work pressures to top that will affect us in a negative way. Each individual will get affected in a different manner.

Remember to choose an exercise that you enjoy doing and find easy to be regular with.

Those who suffer from any disease should refrain from heavy exercise, and bearing weights; be sure to choose an exercise programme with the advice of your doctor

Benefits

Walking is an ideal exercise for diabetics. Do seek the advice of your doctor before starting to walk. Keep aside 30 minutes every day for your walk

A life with no exercise: the problems

Calories Spent in the following:

Try to adopt a way of living which increases your physical activity

When is exercise not to be done?