Many Names, One Disease– Diabesity!!

Do you carry extra weight around your belly, hips or thighs?
Do you crave for sweet, chips or caffeinated beverage at least once a day?
Do you sleep too much or too little?
Are you tired or lethargic all day?
If the answer is YES! You may be one amongst millions of people who are suffering from a health problem that is now an epidemic in our country. Your doctor might have diagnosed you with one of many seemingly different diseases. He may have said you have:
Insulin resistance             Obesity
Pre-diabetes                     Adult onset diabetes
Metabolic syndrome       Type 2 diabetes
What he probably didn't tell you is that ALL of these conditions are basically the same thing--just with varying degrees of severity and the same underlying cause. And because they all are the same condition, the treatment for all of them is also almost the same.
That is why conventional diagnoses have been replaced by a new name that defines this spectrum of health problems more accurately. The term is Diabesity -- the condition of metabolic imbalance and disease that ranges all the way from mild blood sugar imbalance to full blown diabetes, the predisposing cause for which is obesity. Diabesity is a two-part concept. The first part is that obesity drives the diabetes epidemic. The second part is that obesity and diabetes are critically linked

Go Ahead...Spice it up!!

 Traditional Indian food is simple, wholesome, nutritious, satisfying and well balanced. Indian cuisine is full of colour, flavors and texture. A typical Indian meal has a variety of pulses, grains and vegetables thrown in and topped with the magical ingredients called spices. As against the west which uses the dynamic duo of salt and pepper for seasoning, Indian food has plenty of spices that give it its distinct taste, flavour and character. But spices in food play a much bigger role than just enhancing taste.

To begin with, many spices are known to improve digestion of food. That’s because certain spices can reduce inflammation, stimulate digestive fire, and prevent flatulence .For instance black pepper can help increase the flow of saliva and gastric juices. Cardamom helps boost your digestive fire and removes flatulence. Coriander can relax the digestive muscles that cause discomfort from disorders such as Irritable bowel syndrome.

Are Packed Fruit Juices Healthy?

Looking for a healthy snack, easy to consume, readily available…..the advertisements suggests to go ahead and grab a packed fruit juice…….. a convenient, portable, branded ready to consume healthy drink.

A word of Caution…Fruit Juice may sound as the perfect alternative to a fresh fruit but they are far from one!!

Fruits are an important part of a balanced meal. However, more and more people are thinking that packaged fruit juices and drinks are a substitute for fruits. These packaged products are blanketing the market with advertisements and are finding their way into our homes very quickly. The so called fruit juices available in tetrapaks and glass bottles have a fruit sounding name or a fruity logo, but seldom contain 100% fruit juice.

They are always made with artificial flavours and have added synthetic sugars.