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Journalism of Courage
Done with work,most urban Indians reach home and tend to snack with tea or drinks between 6 and 8 pm. According to diet recalls,most people report peak hunger at this time,but consume unhealthy food and extra calories.
This is largely due to easy availability of oily,starchy and processed snacks coupled with poor planning. So extreme is the need to eat,that many grab the first thing they can reach. Typical snacks include fried namkeen,chips,biscuits,samosas,kachoris,pakoras,pizzas,noodles and sandwiches. Worse still,this may be followed by a round of alcoholic drinks and end with a hearty dinner and close to midnight.
Evening is certainly the time when hunger strikes the hardest and self control is at its weakest. Whether it is physiological or psychological is hard to distinguish.
Irrespective of the amount eaten at lunch,this time coincides with the greatest need to eat,when the days stress and pressure eases whether at home or at work. Food certainly is great comfort and perfect partner to de-stress with,thereby,creating an internal stimulus to eat.
Eating inappropriate snacks in the evening and pushing dinner late into the night compounds the dietary mess. Not only does it increase the caloric intake,it also loads the system at the wrong time. It is no wonder that almost every other urban Indian complains of hyper-acidity,gastritis,constipation,irritable bowel syndrome IBS,fatigue,sleeping disturbances and expanding waistlines. Unchecked,this eventually results in dyslipidemia high cholesterol,high blood pressure,increased uric acid,diabetes and even cardio-vascular disease.
According to research,eating late into the night can disturb the hormonal balance and lead to developing obesity,high blood pressure and diabetes. Circadian rhythms are regular mental and physical changes that occur in the course of a day and influence hormones including insulin and leptin,associated with diabetes and obesity respectively. Disturbed circadian rhythms also adversely affect blood pressure,gastro-intestinal function,immunity,mental alertness and concentration. According to recent studies,even the obesity gene exhibits day-night variation,increasing after a meal at night.
Coupled with altered circadian rhythms,consuming high-calorie,oil-laden and high-salt and-sugar content food or dangerous trans-fats along with sedentary lifestyles and stress is a lethal cocktail.
Why is it that we cannot change our snack time into meal time? For those at home,this should be a simple solution. Those who cannot because of work constraints,eating healthy snacks only requires a bit of planning. For those who consume alcohol regularly,an option could be to prepone drinking or learn to drink after meals. For those who work late,breaking up the meals and dividing calories between office and home would help prevent loading up calories late at night.
Even according to traditional Indian wisdom and Ayurvedic principles,eating large meals after sun-down is undesirable.
Changing meal timing and eating the last meal 3-4 hours before going to bed helps improving energy levels and resolving several digestive complaints. When you dine out,eating a light home cooked meal or snack like vegetables,yoghurt,nuts,seeds,dal or salad before leaving for a party can prevent excessive hunger as you reach the party. Decrease your food intake as you progress into night.
Simply eating a healthy meal when you are hungriest will do great service not only to your waistline and your gut,but also prevent several serious degenerative diseases.
Ishi khosla is a former senior nutritionist at Escorts. She heads the Centre of Dietary Counselling and also runs a health food store. She feels that for complete well-being,one should integrate physical,mental and spiritual health. According to her: To be healthy should be the ultimate goal for all.
