dietary habits – Central News Hub

An unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle, and obesity along with excessive screen time from TV, computers, mobile phones, and internet use can increase the risk of developing diabetes in the future and lead to further health complications…writes Dr. Farzana Aliyar

On November 14, World Diabetes Day focuses on this year’s theme: “Breaking Barriers, Bridging Gaps.” With over 422 million people affected globally and 1.5 million lives lost annually, diabetes is a serious health concern.

The rising number of young people impacted by this disease calls for attention. Let’s explore how diabetes affects youth and the potential treatments available through homeopathic medicine.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes Mellitus is a medical condition caused by high levels of glucose in the blood. Glucose is a carbohydrate that provides energy to the body. Glucose that enters the bloodstream through food is converted into glycogen and fat into triglycerides and delivered to the body’s cells. Glucose is broken down by insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas.

But what if the insulin doesn’t work as it should? Glucose levels in the blood can increase and cause serious health problems. Diabetes is a condition in which the production of insulin ceases or does not work properly. Diabetes is mainly of two types. Type-1 diabetes is a congenital condition that does not produce insulin. Type-2 diabetes occurs when insulin is produced but does not work properly. 90% of patients have Type-2 diabetes.

Diabetes in the Thirties?

Until a quarter of a century ago, diabetes was a disease that was only heard of in the elderly and young children due to genetic reasons. However, with time, due to lifestyle changes and a sedentary attitude, diabetes has become a common disease even among people under the age of 25. This type of diabetes seen in young people is called Type-2 diabetes. This is a condition that can run in families. Even family history two generations back can predispose someone to Type-2 diabetes.

The fact is that if you get diabetes in your thirties, you will have to live with complications for the next 40-50 years. A combination of an unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle, and obesity with excessive use of TV, computers, mobile phones, and the internet may cause diabetes in the future and lead to further complications.

A delay in diagnosis and treatment due to a lack of proper awareness can lead to serious health problems. It affects the functioning of almost all organs in the body. Cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke, chronic kidney disease, leg ulcers, nerve damage, cognitive decline, eye damage, vision loss, and sexual impotence can all affect diabetic patients.

Causes and Diagnosis

Type-2 diabetes, which usually occurs in adults, is caused by defects in the body’s insulin action. The disease is caused by the body not responding properly to insulin; lack of exercise, a sedentary lifestyle, and poor diet all contribute to diabetes. Obesity is a factor that greatly increases the risk of diabetes.

Type-1 diabetes, which is seen in children, is caused by a lack of insulin production. It is caused by an infection or autoimmune disease affecting the beta cells of the pancreas. Children with this condition may not have issues with obesity or other health problems, but lifelong insulin therapy may be required.

All types of diabetes are usually diagnosed through a blood test. The main tests are pre- and post-meal blood tests and HbA1C to find the average glucose level over the past three months. A healthy blood glucose level is between 70 and 120 before a meal and between 90 and 130 after a meal.

HbA1C is the most effective test to assess whether diabetes is under control. In non-diabetics, HbA1C should be less than six. In diabetics, it should be kept below seven.

People with a family history of diabetes are at higher risk, but diabetes can be kept at bay with proper exercise and diet.

Treatment of Diabetes in Homeopathy

In homoeopathy, treatments are given according to the characteristics of each patient. The same method is followed by doctors in the case of diabetes. For this, the patient’s physical nature, disease, family history, mental status, response to weather, diet, etc., are all considered. This study, which helps understand the life structure of the patient, is called a constitutional study. Then, depending on the symptoms, different remedies are prescribed for each patient.

In other branches of medical science, diabetes is considered a chronic disease. However, with proper medication and lifestyle changes, diabetes can be controlled. Along with this, reducing mental stress, adopting a healthy diet, and exercising are also necessary.

Diet and lunchtime, Intermittent fasting concept. Vegetables, oranges, cheese, nuts and clock on a white plate. Healthy dietary food.

Changes Can Be Made, and Diabetes Can Be Controlled

Lifestyle and dietary changes are just as important as, or even more important than, medication.

Avoid foods high in carbohydrates like rice, rice dishes, sweets, and bakery foods. Instead, make sure to eat easily digestible foods, protein, healthy fats, fibre, nutritiously, balanced meals, and various types of salads. Care should be taken to avoid fatty foods, junk foods, sugary foods, and drinks to prevent obesity and diabetes risks.

Another crucial factor is making exercise a habit. At least 120 minutes of exercise per week is required. Brisk walking, jogging, going to the gym, various types of cardio exercises, weight training, cycling, and skipping can all be done.

It takes more effort and self-control to bring about a marked change in the lifestyle that has been followed for so long. Along with this, tension should be avoided, and adequate rest should be obtained. These types of changes can help control diabetes and prevent many lifestyle diseases.

ALSO READ: Green energy for millennials

ALSO READ: Metabolic Syndrome: Vital Health Checkups for At-Risk Families

Unhealthy dietary habits: Short cut to obesity

The protective nature of plant foods is due to the combined benefit of fibre and phytonutrients they contain which provides protection against the initiation and progression of the disease. These beneficial components of plant foods include phytosterols and antioxidants…writes Dr Anita Jatana

Obesity is an emerging public health problem of epidemic proportions worldwide. As to WHO, globally, obesity has nearly tripled since 1975 and as per 2016 data 1.9 billion adults are overweight or obese.

Unhealthy dietary habits are a major modifiable factor, leading to obesity. India too is battling this full-blown crisis of malnutrition which has worsened over the years in addition to undernutrition and micronutrient deficiency.

The increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity are important predicting indicators of their relationship with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, heart disease and cancers that today are plaguing the nation.

This increase in NCDs is partly due to a shift in lifestyle with a higher intake of calorie-dense foods, high in refined cereals, sodium, sugar, saturated fat, processed meats, packaged foods and Trans fatsy and low intake of vegetables, fruits, fibre, nuts and seeds coupled with a decrease in physical activity levels.

Consuming good amounts of fruits and vegetables at 300g of vegetables and 100g of fruits, as recommended by ICMR in addition to pulses, cereals, millet and other plant foods are known to be protective against diseases caused by chronic oxidative stress. This benefit is both due to consuming these plant-based foods which have health-promoting compounds and due to a decrease in the consumption of excess processed foods and red meats.

The protective nature of plant foods is due to the combined benefit of fibre and phytonutrients they contain which provides protection against the initiation and progression of the disease. These beneficial components of plant foods include phytosterols and antioxidants.

Polyphenols are a group of plant-derived functional components and are categorised into lignans, phenolic acids and flavonoids based on their different structures. They have various biological activities including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antiviral and antibacterial properties and play an important role in preventing NCDs which are on the rise.

They are also potential prebiotics which regulates the intestinal flora and prevent dysbiosis and maintain gut health and overall health. To ensure a healthy balanced vegetarian diet all the macro and micronutrients should be adequately included in the diet.

Carbohydrates (CHO) are the main source of energy whereas Complex CHO has many other additional health benefits too. It provides dietary fibres – both soluble and insoluble which play a major role in disease prevention. Including fruits, vegetables, and pulses and choosing whole grains like wheat, oats, barley, quinoa, corn and millet improves the nutritional quality of food intake.

Millets are a group of cereals which have many health-promoting attributes, they are gluten-free and have higher amounts of proteins, minerals, and vitamins and some even have a low Glycaemic Index (GI) when compared to wheat and rice. Sorghum (Jowar), pearl millet (Bajra), foxtail millet (Kangni), and finger millet (ragi) are some of the important millets. They are a good source of fibre and have health-promoting vitamins, minerals, phenolic acids and flavonoids, in addition to their potential prebiotic and probiotics health benefits.

With so many health benefits it is good to include these ‘Nutri-cereals’ with a variety of other grains on a daily basis to get the benefit from all. ICMR recommends 1/3 of the cereal intake can be these healthy millets.

Proteins have a wider range of functions in the body. Recommendations as per ICMR are to consume 0.6-0.83 gm /kg body weight of proteins. Including vegetarian protein sources such as pulses, beans, soy, milk and milk products and nuts and seeds and also combining cereals with pulses complements proteins and ensures adequate intake.

Fats and oils are an essential component of a balanced diet providing the essential fatty acids besides helping in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins – Vitamin A, D, E and K. The fat consumption of 25-40g (5-6 teaspoons) per person/ day of visible fat such as oils, ghee, butter etc. depending on the energy requirement.

It is recommended to decrease the consumption of Saturated fats to less than 8-10 per cent of the energy obtained from animal products, coconut and palm oil and include monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated (PUFA) fats (in the ratio of 1.3:1 respectively) from nuts, avocados, seeds, and oils of olive, safflower, sunflower, corn and oil, safflower, canola in the right proportion.

An adult should ideally maintain a 5-10:1 ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 PUFA for all the essential functions in the body. Omega -3 is known to support heart health, improve mental well-being, and reduce depression and is important during pregnancy being critical building blocks of the fetal brain and retina. Vegetarians should include nuts, seeds, whole grains, legumes, and vegetable oils of soy, and canola in their day’s diet to get their required omega 3

Trans fatty acids (TFA), produced by partial hydrogenation of vegetable fat (Vanaspati ghee or margarine) are also found in processed, fried foods and are responsible for adverse effects on serum lipids. They are associated with increased levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol and decreased levels of HDL (good) cholesterol and hence, are worse than saturated fats for heart health. It is recommended that the intake of TFA should be less than 1 per cent of total energy intake, which is less than 2.2 g/day for a 2,000-calorie diet. (As per AHA)

Multi-source cooking oils combine the potency of two or more edible oils which improves the oxidative and thermal stability of oils and improves the balance of fatty acids and introduces phytonutrients to the blend. Consuming fats as blends is a viable option to get the benefit of both the oils used in blends and lower the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Studies have shown that a blend of rice bran oil and safflower oil (70:30) with added antioxidants showed improvement in blood lipid levels and inflammatory markers.

The mainstay of Good Health is a lifestyle change and a continued commitment. Consuming a balanced diet with adequate macronutrients comprising of complex carbohydrates from whole grains oats, millets, adequate plant-based proteins from pulses, beans, milk and milk products and nuts and seeds with adequate fruits and vegetables and healthy fats in the right proportion coupled with a good exercise regime is the mantra to good health.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes in the Thirties?

Causes and Diagnosis

Treatment of Diabetes in Homeopathy

Changes Can Be Made, and Diabetes Can Be Controlled

ALSO READ: Majaz’s colourful life and ageless poetry