By Bhavna Malhotra, Consultant – Nutrition & Lifestyle
bhavna.nutritionqueries@
It took us a pandemic to look at food as medicine!
Food was always given importance in our culture. The mention of food in Vedas is proof enough. As per Ayurveda food should be eaten as per one’s body type (vatta, pitta, kapha) and as per the season. It even emphasizes the way it should be consumed for proper digestion. It says that food should be eaten in a calm environment, sitting on floor with plate kept a little higher than the floor, should be hygienically prepared, and it should be taken before sunset. The purpose of creating this framework was not to treat a disease through food but to prevent any disease condition. Isn’t this exactly what we are trying to do today given the pandemic!
‘Eating like your granny’ is a popular dietary advice these days. But before aping your grandmother please ask her if she has any metabolic disorder like diabetes or hypertension. If she is in her late 70s or early 80s with robust health then definitely, she is the one to follow. The reason I say this is because grannies who were in their 50s in 1990s were exposed to the fast-food invasion.
With economic liberalization fast food restaurants started popping up (first Mc. Donald came in 1996, first Dominos in 1995 in Delhi). Also, with increase in family incomes there was more disposable income to eat out and it gave access to even processed foods which started appearing on shelves of local food stores. If your granny gave into to the temptations then in all probability, she would be facing some metabolic issue at this age. So, eating like your great granny makes up a better strategy.
Your great granny had access to only natural homemade, fresh food. No store bought laddus and chiwdas were a part of her diet. She had minimal exposure to pollution and stress. Most importantly she had no television or smartphone to make her sit for long hours. She was walking to the vegetable market and probably even grinding the grains and millets at home. It was not only the fresh whole food made from scratch that kept her fit but the hard work that she did in procuring and preparing that food that added to her health.
Having said this we need to appreciate the fact that the life expectancy has gone up from 57.86 in 1990 to 69.73 in 2020. With access to better medical care this is increasing every year. As the longevity increases degenerative metabolic disease risk increases too. So, are metabolic diseases our fate with increased life span? Not really if we start focusing on ‘health span’ rather than only life span.
This is possible if we combine our ‘great granny’s’ dietary wisdom and active lifestyle with the improved medical care. This essentially means that if we eat fresh, seasonal, wholesome food made from scratch at home traditionally as per our culture there is nothing that can go wrong. A very important thing to remember here is the portion control. Your granny had limited resources and had access to special high fat and sugar meals only on festivals and special occasions. A laddu, halwa or puri though traditional wasn’t made frequently. Even when made the huge joint families shared it and hence portion was automatically controlled.
Our great granny’s’ diet was more aligned to Ayurveda. She ate fresh, seasonal foods which fall in sattvic category. Intake of rajasic food (fried, spicy) was on special occasions and tamasic food (processed) were mostly unavailable to her or avoided by her. She ate in peace without any gadgets, sitting on floor.
With our current hectic lifestyles shunning all that is modern and convenient is not possible. We just need to make our food choices wisely. Pick foods which are seasonal, organic, minimally processed, are closest to their natural form. Keep the fire in the home kitchens alive. Choose to eat in peace without gadgets and be disciplined with timings of meals (especially early dinner). Let us use science of modern medicine/ nutrition and ayurvedic wisdom to our advantage and add not only ‘years to our life’ but ‘life to our years’!
