Who does not like to stay fit and in a good shape? It is however our sedentary life style and
fondness for junk food that takes a toll on our health and leads to obesity. In
this space age people look for instant results and so to bring back the body in
shape they go in for crash diets. However, while crash diets may give a
temporary result appealing to our senses, in the long run they do more harm
than good. Crash diets may lead to nutritional deficiencies , sudden fall in blood
pressure weakness and fatigue. They may even weaken our natural immune system
making us susceptible to various ailments. Thus while crash diets may appear to
provide instant benefits , such shortcuts do not work in the long run.
While most of us are aware that for a healthy life balanced
diet and physical exercise are absolutely essential many of us do not know as
to what constitutes a balanced diet. Our body requires various elements like
proteins, minerals, carbohydrates, vitamins etc. Whenever there is a deficiency of one or the
other element it could lead to a bodily ailment. Any one food item does not
satisfy the requirement of all the nutrients. A balanced diet , however ensures
that our body receives all the nutrients in a right proportion.
The next question is
what kind of food constitutes a balanced diet ? The green leafy vegetables are
rich in vitamins and minerals. So are the various kind of fruits. The cereals
satisfy the requirements for protein and carbohydrates. Similarly, milk fulfills
the requirement for calcium and vitamin D which makes our bones strong. No
wonder every mother ensures that milk is an essential intake of her child’s
daily diet . The nature of the balanced diet would be different for different
categories of people and different age groups. For instance those whose work
involves more of physical activity like manual labour , sports persons ,
growing children etc. would require larger quantity of proteins for making up
for the wear and tear of their muscles. People of advanced age would need to
have food rich in vitamin supplements so
that their immune system can remain strong . A person with limited physical
activity needs to keep a watch on his intake of carbohydrates , sugar and fat
and focus more on a diet comprising of vegetables , fruits proteins and minerals.
While a balanced diet is essential for staying healthy and
in shape it is not a substitute for regular physical activity which helps in
burning up the excess calories and fat which accumulates in our body. Technological
advances has made our life comfortable so much so that it has cut down on our
movements . For travelling there are four wheelers and two wheelers ; for climbing there are lifts. Even our chairs
in offices have wheels. On top of this our intake of sugar in innumerable cups
of tea and coffee makes the situation still more grave. If we cannot change our
life style at least we can cut down on our sugar intake and substitute it with
honey. Honey in our diet has proven benefits . It cuts down on calorie intake helping us
to remain trim and slim; keeps our skin healthy and is also good for
digestion etc. No wonder it has been an essential ingredient of age old
ayurvedic medicines.
So next time before reaching for that junk food think of how
it would disfigure your body.
