Reverse Your Ailments
The next time your blood pressure shoots up, remember that your body is capable of controlling it without a trip to the GP. Dr Nandita Shah, a homeopath, says simple dietary changes can help prevent, and more importantly reverse, ailments like osteoporosis, diabetes and even high blood pressure without popping pills. Shah, who has been a homeopathic practitioner for 30 years, says the biggest hurdle most of us encounter is that we fail to understand our body. “If you put kerosene in a car that runs on petrol, the car will break down,” Shah says, adding that the human body functions better if it consumes foods that are a better fit. She offers an instance. Our body is mostly alkaline, she explains. A pH (potential Hydrogen) level between 1 and 6.9 is considered acidic, while one between 7.1 and 14 is marked alkaline. The human body’s natural pH level stands at 7.45, making it alkaline. All fruits and vegetables, natural juices like coconut water are alkaline, which make them a better nutrition fit than say animal proteins, tea, coffee, sugar, alcohol, and packaged foods that have high acidic levels. An imbalance in pH levels, says Shah, can lead to a disruption in cellular activity, causing health problems that range from heartburn to heart disease.
Nutrients in foods do not work alone in isolation, instead they work together as a powerhouse team in what’s called synergy. We’re often so focused on single nutrients like vitamin c and calcium, that we don’t consider that maybe it’s how these nutrients work with one another that make them so great.
The Journal of Nutrition in 2004 conducted a study on rats that were fed tomatoes and broccoli. Prostate tumors grew less in rats fed a combination of tomatoes and broccoli versus rats who were fed tomatoes and broccoli on its own. They even isolated and removed the cancer fighting substances found in tomatoes and broccoli and fed them to the rats, but they were ineffective. The point I’m trying to make is, a lycopene (the potent nutrient in tomatoes) supplement might be useful, but the whole tomato is better, and that tomato with a bit of fat is even better, but that tomato with a bit of fat and some broccoli is so much better. Why exactly? Scientists are still unsure but it’s all attributed to food synergy.
Eat Right To Be Healthy
Osteoporosis cause: Calcium deficiency is not the cause of this condition. It’s a diet that’s either very rich in acidic foods or high in protein. Proteins are broken down into amino acids which are acid yeilding. And so, consuming large amounts of animal protein results in the body extracting calcium from the bones to neutralise the effect of acids. When the lost calcium is not restored, it causes osteoporosis over a period of time.
Food solution: Eat foods rich in vitamin D (it helps the body absorb calcium from foods), eliminate acidic foods like colas and caffeine. Include more fruits and vegetables in your meals. Green leafy veggies are rich in Vitamin K, and help rebuild bones.
Diabetes cause: Sugar is not the cause of diabetes, rather high blood sugar is the result of diabetes. The real cause of type 2 diabetes is the presence of fats in muscle cells. Beta cells present in the pancreas monitor the bloodstream for glucose. When blood sugar levels rise after meals, the beta cells respond by secreting insulin. Insulin helps in the further absorption of glucose. Consumption of unhealthy fats causes beta cells to lose their ability to sense glucose in the blood, allowing blood sugar to rise unnaturally.
Food solution: Avoid unhealthy fats found in fried foods, packaged foods, butter, meat, whole fat dairy products, and most vegetable oils. Any fat that comes with fibre is good for you. Think peanuts, cashew, and sunflower, sesame and pumpkin seeds.
