CONTROL ON FAT INTAKE
Some types of food causing illnesses are common food that almost everyone eats. To become a healthy person you have to redefine normal food.
Food in India is as diverse as its culture. We have a history of being ruled by invaders from different parts of the world who brought with them their culture and exotic food habits. Some of these became part of Indian cuisine. Every region and state has its own recipes and varied ways of cooking a dish. The curries of India have a fans following throughout the world.It is a widely known fact that we are what we eat and a healthy balanced diet ensures a healthy individual.
Food on one hand can make you robust and glowing whereas it can also make you look pale and weak. Most of our health problems are in someway or the other connected with our eating habits.
According to medical surveys the number of cardiac and diabetic patients in India is quite high. People are having heart problems at a young age. Is it caused by the increasing stress level? Yes, to some extent, though doctors claim that the changing food habits are a major cause for such high rate of cardiac and other health related problems.
Food habits in general are influenced by socio-cultural background, religious beliefs and local customs and individual taste. But what is being witnessed lately is that our food habits are becoming quite unhealthy. There is a trend of preference for fast and oily foods. Now more consideration is given to tasty food rather than healthy food.
The excess of cooking and oil in our food makes it quite unhealthy. On a more basic level some Punjabi foods do tend to be higher in fat and lower in nutritional value.
This is because basic Punjabi cooking involves tarka or vaghar. Tarka or vaghar is the sautéing of onions, ginger, garlic and various Indian spices. This is added to dals or subzis, for example, to give it its unique Indian taste. Problems come in when people use way too much oil or ghee to do tarka/vaghar. The fat content of the dal or subzi increases dramatically. The other nutritional issue that tends to come up with Punjabi food is that subzis are often cooked to a "paste".
Overcooking vegetables does result in loss of nutritional value. Most of the vitamins and minerals leach out of the vegetable. A popular dish like saag (spinach and broccoli) curries, puree and most of the curries are made with either cream or ghee. Excess intake of ghee is quite dangerous for health. A health dish should be low in fat content and should not be overcooked.
Unhealthy food habits result in various problems like obesity, heart attack, high blood pressure etc and when a person is confronted with such problems it leads to innumerable visits to a doctor and various other unhealthy ways of reducing weight. It's really important to keep a vigil on the food one is having.
Almost all the food we eat can be cooked with minimum oil and fat, and can provide all the nutrition we need, with the flavors we like. Still, most of us insist on overcooking, undercooking or using wrong methods for the wrong food, taste wise and also for maintaining good health.
It would serve us well; if we took the trouble to find out what cooking method best serves the purpose of a certain food, taste wise and also for maintaining good health.
As far as healthy methods of cooking are concerned, steaming and baking stay on top of the list. Baking generally does not require any extra grease, whether it is seafood, poultry or vegetables provided they are averagely sized pieces. All you need to do is arrange them on a tray ed in foil), (open or covered in foil), and the hot air of the oven does the rest. No extra oil or fat is needed to turn out a healthy and tasty dish.
In addition, grilling and broiling foods is also a better idea than frying or boiling. For one, in both these methods, very little, if any, oil is needed. Besides, the natural fats contained in the dishes (specially the meats), usually drip away in the course of cooking, and hence the result is a healthier food that is also tasty.
Normal vegetable oil can be replaced by healthy oil like olive oil. Olive oil is now universally accepted as the healthiest of all edible oils, a fact that has been confirmed by all recent scientific research. Olive oil has the highest content of monounsaturated fats (MUF) and among the lowest amounts of other harmful fats. MUF increases good cholesterol (HDL) and reduces bad cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides. Olive oil thus fights against heart disease. It is also a rich source of vitamins A, D, E, K and other antioxidants, which fight cancer, prevent ageing and work wonders for your skin and hair. Olive oil is also good for the digestive system, bone structure, high blood pressure and diabetes. Most doctors recommend a complete switch over to olive oil during post-cardiac problems. Why not switch earlier and prevent problems before they arise ?
Finally it has to be realized that the food you eat is responsible for keeping you healthy and fit. Healthy food would result in healthy body. Instead of going to drastic measures to reach an impractical body image, appreciate your body and treat yourself with respect. Think of food as a fuel to nourish your body. Physical activity paired with a healthy, balanced diet is the key for controlling weight, promoting overall well being and reducing the risk of chronic disease.
People who are very fond of oily food must make a time bound plan to switch over to healthy eating habits. The first step towards this would be to minimize the intake of these foods. For example if you are having it on a regular basis bring it down to once a week. A time bound program should be made to substitute the harmful oily food with healthy foods. Oily foods like samosa, paratha, shahi paneer, rajma, dal makhni, bhalla etc can be replaced with idli, vegetable, sandwich, poha, upma, dosa etc. The excess oil in the foods like pakora, tikki etc can be absorbed with paper napkins.
Dr. Rishi Agarwal, Senior Consultant, Cardiology, Escorts Hospital, unfolds the harmful effects of fats and guides the way to a healthy life.
Health at risk….
It is well evident that oils generate fats. Extra fat consists cholesterol and it gets deposited into arteries that might result into serious health problems like heart attack and strokes. Two of the most harmful fats are saturated fat and trans fat. Both of these fats can increase a person's risk of heart disease. Excess fat also leads to obesity, diabetes and sometimes even cancer.
Maximum amount of oil to be consumed per day….
Normally, the consumption of oil should not exceed 10-15ml per day. Less than this amount can cause deficiency of vitamins and more than that can create health problems.
Stay healthy…
We should try to consume more of natural anti oxidants, which one can get through fruits. The transfats and high-energy food should be avoided. All high-energy food like ice creams ultimately changes into fat. People should adopt a healthy lifestyle, avoid stress and abstain from junk food. Exercising should be a regular habit as it burns the calories and leads to good health.