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Archive for April, 2009

Cheers! It’s healthy!

Monday, April 27th, 2009

Are you a die-hard workaholic? Do you experience guilt when time gets ‘wasted’? Do you get impatient with your family and friends who demand your time that cuts into your precious ‘work’? Do you dislike having long chats on the phone with friends because it takes you away from your imagined life purpose. Do you avoid going to parties, exhibitions, dinners with friends because you consider it is a total waste of time? Well, there is some new research from Japan just for you

 

The research suggests that being surrounded by lots of family and friends and having a supportive social network enhances the health benefits of having a few drinks and is known to be good for the heart and may even help people live longer and reduce risk of heart disease. It would make you happy and relaxed and consequently have a beneficial effect on your health in general. Needless to say light drinking is heart protective i.e. 1-2 glasses of wine 2-3 times a week. However heavy drinking and too much socializing would wash away all the health benefits. As always moderation is the key to good health.

 

Get-togethers with family and friends are fun. So come out of your sacred cocoon and allow yourself to loosen up a bit. Laughing with friends is not only relaxing and de-stressing, but also therapeutic – in the sense that it has a balancing effect on your terribly serious life.

 

Laughter, play and having a good time with friends and family is as important to your health as is eating and sleeping. It is critical for your sanity and continued well being.

 

So friends whilst it is good to work hard – don’t take the fun out of life! Cheers!

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Hungry Children

Monday, April 20th, 2009

Being a child isn’t the best thing in India today. Apart from the shocking cases of child molestation and incest in the newspapers, there are children who are dying of hunger. One in every three children below the age of five go to bed hungry & starving every night. Imagine how utterly aweful life must be for these children. Whilst in India we have the largest child feeding programme in the world, it seems to be incorrectly designed as the food and resources do not reach these starving children. Politicians need to consider this issue as ‘high priority’ because providing adequate nutrition to pregnant women and children is crucial to the health of our nation. Every year from age one to twelve a child typically grows taller by 2 to 3 inches and heavier by 2-3kgs. Growth charts and weighing scales provide valuable clues to a child’s health.  Increase in height and weight are two of the many developmental changes that occur during childhood. The government run feeding centers (in our slums and villages) fail to look after malnourished children as they are inadequately equipped and are unable to meet the needs of children under 2 (who are most at risk). It is important to know that when hunger is chronic; children can become malnourished. The high statistics – (42.5% under the age of 5) of starving children in India can take a devastating toll on the health of our nation. Malnutrition contributes to nearly half of the deaths of children under 4 years of age. The ones who survive, grow up with physiological and psychological problems. Malnutrition can impair a child’s functioning in many ways. Meeting the nutritional needs of children is critical to support their growth and development.

 

Our government needs to call for more effective food assistance program especially designed for starving children in order to eradicate malnutrition and reduce the number of sick children who will eventually grow up into ‘sick’ adults. This is crucial for the health of our country.

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Is weight training safe for children under the age of fifteen?

Monday, April 13th, 2009

It’s such a shame that every appliance comes with an owner’s manual and our priceless bodies don’t!….which is why i am writing this.

Every boy wants to own a 6 pack abdomen – complete with hair like shahrukh khan’s and short sleeve T-shirts with bulging biceps / triceps et al.

But is weight training safe for children? In my opinion pre-pubescent children should not engage in weight training as it may cause premature bone fusion and heavy weight lifting can put too much strain on their muscles as a result stunt their growth and growth plates especially when proper technique is not used. Hormonally and structurally children’s physiologies are not suited to the stressors of a rigorous weight training program. High intensity strategies, addition of heavy sets and heavy weights can probably spell disaster for any child subjected to an intense weight training regime. It would be wise to instead, focus on a ‘strength training program’ rather than ‘body building’. Children should be supervised at all times during such sessions. Proper form and technique should be maintained during the strength training program. Children should use very light weights with more repetitions. Care should be taken to avoid injuries which growing children may be more predisposed to.

 

The right strength training program isn’t just a scaled down version of an adult program. It should focus on correct technique, controlled movements, lesser resistance (weights) and more repetitions. This would help your child increase his muscle strength, endurance, stamina, give him a healthy body composition (muscle to fat ratio), stronger bones and improve his performances in other sport activities. Strength training should be one part of a well rounded fitness program which should include proper diet, aerobic exercise and stretching exercises – Please take note parents! Do not let your children get carried away by bulging biceps.

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Happy Thoughts

Monday, April 6th, 2009

I want to share with you that it was almost a decade ago when I read this line in an article which said ‘All that you need to do in this world is to be happy’! This line changed the way i ‘saw’ things. For one; the first thing I reminded myself on waking up, was to ‘arrange’ my thoughts in such a way, that they would keep me smiling and happy all day long. Initially it seemed difficult, as any stressful situation that came along was able to ruin my state of mind! But with practice i was able to continue in my happy state for longer periods. Secondly, i began to do work which gave me the greatest joy and was able to spread the same to others. ‘Do not permit little little things to ruin your happiness’- I told myself… you are not only what you ‘eat’, but also what you ’think’ all day long. Therefore the solution is to choose the right thoughts in order to stay happy, just like i would ask my clients to choose the right food if they wanted to be healthy…Just ponder over this friends, everyone has issues and problems to deal with. If these are dealt with in a happy (read positive) state of mind the outcome is more likely to be good (read positive). Become aware of your emotions every minute. Dismiss the negative thought and begin your day with something positive. Think positive. It sets the tone for the day. Practise this every single day until it becomes a habit. Ofcourse there are ways to deal with situations. The first rule is to ‘choose’ not to react to an unpleasant situation. This is the only path to happiness. Once you are free of negativity you can develop a choice in response as you are no longer controlled by your emotions. Your response in such a state is more likely to make the outcome positive. Stop worrying about things which are beyond your control. Stay free of reactions and always choose to think positive and accentuate the same in others. Life is too precious. Not to be wasted on hurry, worry and curry. Stay healthy! Remain happy!

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