The exploding lifestyle disease stats and how to mitigate it
Cardiovascular disease and hypertension are on the rise, and now the leading cause of death. Dr Padma explores where we are going
I live my life full size on my terms. Zumba in the evenings, dance at social events, travel around the World, sing my heart out, or walk with my husband just to catch up on issues and gorge at will.
At a recent class re-union the biggest gripe from my friends was that I did not change one bit from my high school days. While I was flattered, as a Physician I am hyper-aware of the ticking time bomb of hypertension and cardiac disease spreading among the youth of the country.
Young office goers and students live on oversized greasy burgers, extra-large sized fries and cheese loaded pizzas, all downed with generous portions of icy cold fizzy beverages. They do not realize the havoc that the power of compounding of such diets plays out over a two-decade timeframe, blissfully unaware that this is now the leading cause of lifestyle diseases eventually leading to death, worldwide.
I have been a fan of home-cooked food. Eat what you want, but cook yourself. I strongly believe in the motto you are what you eat. When you do not have control over your ingredients, and you let others dictate and infect your food with addictive ingredients such as fatty substances, salt, and sugars, we pay the price. Remember, a restaurant’s sole objective is to captivate your taste buds so that you come back as a repeat customer, and keep their cash registers ringing.
It has been demonstrated in a study that people who eat more in restaurants and fast food outlets tend to accumulate higher levels of phthalates, than the ones who ate home-cooked meals. Phthalates are chemicals found in plastic containers, take away boxes, kitchen equipment. They have been linked to birth defects, asthma, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological problems.
Having said that, everything has a place in life. I love to eat out in a restaurant, and it can be a lot of fun so long as you are in control. It gives me a good break from the monotony of chopping, cooking and cleaning after, and I feel pampered. Restaurants oftentimes offer cuisine choices that you rarely get to cook, and in the company of family and friends, it serves to enhance social bonding.
The most asked question on MedhealthTV, the portal I run for pregnant mothers is about diet. They care. They care for their food so that their baby is healthy. This is a natural instinct every mom displays and deploys. What they cook for themselves is healthy. If only all of us had access to such healthy food.
This set me thinking and is what prompted me to team up with likeminded people and start a platform where people can order home-cooked food and have it delivered. Customers have been spoilt with instant gratification by restaurant delivery platforms, so it does take time to adjust that a home chef needs extra lead time to custom prepare fresh food against an order.
On top of changing their food habits, I urge everyone to incorporate a lifestyle sprinkled generously with physical activity. I can guarantee that your life will be as fulfilling and rewarding with these bite-sized, but regular changes.
One of my lifestyle management companies — Pledze, offers tons of free resources for anyone to adhere to a lifestyle management program.
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Dr Padma is a Family Practice Physician, mother of two, runs several blogs and sites on maternal health, and a Founder of two lifestyle related companies — Pledze and WellnessDoc.
