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Archive for the ‘Diet & Nutrition’ Category

The Pros and Cons of Ketogenic Diet

By newblog | December 9th, 2018 | LEAVE A COMMENT

Keto diet is the latest buzzword in the fitness and nutrition industry. It’s always good to know the facts from the myths before you taking that big leap into a new diet plan.

PROS

Fat Loss: Research and their findings have found that keto has shown a significant amount of fat loss. The underlying principle here is that when you deplete the body of its primary source of energy – Carbs, the body tends to use fat as an energy source, this leads to a gradual but major drop in body fat. Also, this helps you to satiate your hunger pangs, thereby keeping you on track mentally and physically.

Sedentary Lifestyle: Going on a keto diet makes more sense for people with a desk job or corporate jobs that don’t require a lot of physical movement. If your body isn’t moving through the day, it does not need high amounts of carbohydrates for sustenance. This will also enable you to use the carbs at your disposal in a more efficient manner if you time your consumption according to your workout.


Boosted Insulin Sensitivity: This happens when the body is not efficiently synthesizing glucose and sugar from carbohydrates. This will in-turn reduce your training performance, decrease the amount of glucose a muscle cell can hold in itself. Spending time in the state of ketosis might be of great help to your body’s long-term ability to synthesize sugars.

CONS

Brain Sugar Symbiosis: A very basic scientific and medical fact is that the brain needs blood glucose (sugar) to derive its energy to be able to function. Keto diet restricts carbohydrates that are essential for the proper functioning of the human brain and in-turn the brain. Otherwise, you may feel sluggish, tired or lower cognitive functioning.

Carbs Encourage Overall Performance: If you are an athlete who leads a very active lifestyle or a person who has a job that requires a lot of energy and stamina then keto is a bad idea for you. Carbs facilitate growth and hence a low carb count is counterproductive to energy and stamina.

Medical Use: Traditionally keto was recommended for people with a sedentary disease like paralysis, Parkinsons. These people have no option of bodily movement to burn off fat, hence keto was an alternative as the person would require removal of fat without physical movement. But misinterpreting this and using it in the fitness world has not compensated for the non-sedentary lifestyles and the huge amounts of energy required.

Calories: In principle, weight loss is governed by the ratio of calories in versus calories out. If you’re burning more calories than you consume then you will inevitably lose weight. By placing too much emphasis on fat, and not enough on the overall calorie count, keto seems to be losing focus of the issue at hand.

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HIIT FOR WEIGHT LOSS

By Team Wellzee | April 14th, 2018 | LEAVE A COMMENT

Weight Loss Problem

The biggest challenge at a global level today is weight management. In most countries, around 25% to 35% of the population is already over weight or fat. This figure is set to cross 40% at a global level and specifically in countries like the USA, India and China.

Exercise Failure for Weight Loss

People across the World have been trying out various modes of exercise for weight loss. Most do not result in weight loss. Even if it does, you put on weight again. So there is a dilemma we are facing.

Some things work for certain individuals and some work for others. However, there is one sure shot solution which is explained below. It is called HIIT.

HIIT Or High Intensity Interval Training

HIIT is a form of exercise which has developed over the recent few years which enables sustainable weight loss which is relatively healthy, stable and reasonably fast.

In HIIT, one does not have to exercise for a long time. Twenty minutes a day is all that is required. We need to warm up for a few minutes in our preferred form of cardio vascular exercise like running, spinning, cycling or even dance and zumba.

Then we have to get the heart rate up very rapidly and keep it there for a minute. Then we slow down for two minutes and keep repeating the cycle till we cross twenty or thirty minutes. The ratio is normally 1:2 between high intensity and low intensity.

Example:

5 minutes warm up on the treadmill

1 minute running at a speed of 10 or 12 kmph

2 minutes walking at a speed of 5 or 6 kmph

Repeat the cycle 3 or 4 times and cool down for 5 minutes.

Practice this at least four days a week and combine with healthy and sensible eating. Your weight will start coming down. Write to me for weight loss consultation or any wellness related issues on gaurang@abhisti.com or call on 9892248408

SLEEPING FOR WEIGHT LOSS

By Team Wellzee | April 12th, 2018 | LEAVE A COMMENT

Weight Loss Myth

There is a misconception prevailing that one cannot sleep too much or after meals if one wants to lose weight. The actual problem is not sleep, the problem is that we eat too much and do not allow the body to digest it effectively.

Quantity and Quality of Food is Important

One of the most important aspects for weight loss or weight management is the quantity of food we eat and the quality.

By quantity we mean one should eat only till one is 70% full. Never go up to 100% or more. Even within this, one-third of our diet should be healthy liquids.

Quality means healthy food for most of the time. Complex carbohydrates, whole grains, dairy, fresh vegetables, soups and fresh, good quality non-vegetarian food.

Role of Sleep

When we sleep well, the body gets a better chance to digest and absorb the food well and provide the vital nutrients to all the organs in the body via the blood stream. Even sleeping or lying down after meals actually do not increase weight. In fact, the reverse may happen.

How To Sleep for Weight Loss

After lunch and dinner, try and lie down on your left side for thirty minutes and relax. All your digestive organs are on the left side and most of your blood flow needs to diverted to the stomach and related organs for at least an hour or two after meals.

If you start other activities immediately, then essential blood flow and the body’s energy gets diverted to other areas. This results in partial or incomplete digestion. partial digestion leads to building up of excess fat molecules in the body.

Sleep After Meals is Natural

This is the reason why we all feel lethargic or sleepy after meals. It is nature’s mechanism to make us lie down and relax so that digestion can be completed.

Therefore, you observe in all ancient cultures and even in many places today, there is the concept of an afternoon siesta. Once our digestion is almost done, we feel fresh and more energetic and can work better for the rest of the day.

So start getting into the habit of relaxing or dozing off on your left side after lunch and dinner, whenever possible for you. To get great weight loss diet plans, write to me on gaurang@abhisti.com and also visit http://wellzee.com/diet-programs

WHAT TO EAT DURING PREGNANCY

By Team Wellzee | February 4th, 2017 | LEAVE A COMMENT

BACKGROUND

There is a lot of confusion regarding what to eat during pregnancy. There is a whole range and variety of advice and information which comes from society at large. The best person to advise you is your gynaecologist or a certified nutritionist. However some guidelines work for nutrition during pregnancy.

PREGNANCY – WHAT TO EAT

– Eat what is generally healthy. This means fresh fruits, vegetables, grains, locally available fresh foods.

– Eat freshly prepared food as far as possible.

– Eat food which is neither too cold nor too hot. Moderation of temperature of food and liquids is the key.

– Desi cow’s ghee, Chhaas (buttermilk) and cow’s milk is recommended for good health.

– Eat a lot of variety. Keep varying food, vegetables, fruits all the time so that you can get a variety of micro nutrients.

– Have dry fruits in small quantities like walnuts, almonds, dates, apricots, raisins.

Most importantly have the micro nutrient supplement recipes given in the wellzee pregnancy program.

 

INDEPENDENCE FROM ILLNESS

By Team Wellzee | August 12th, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

BACKGROUND

There are multiple illnesses these days which strike sooner or later. These are mostly non-communicable in nature, like high blood pressure, heart problems, diabetes, asthma, stress related diseases and cancers. Most of these are caused by lifestyle issues, pollution and wrong eating habits. Many a times, one may not get these diseases but get minor things cold, flu, fever, falling ill frequently and so on. The other problem faced are orthopedic in nature, ranging from mild aches and pains to arthritis and more severe bone and joint problems.

There is a lot of information available all over for a plethora of these problems from across the World. These range from the tested to the untried, from solid therapies to fad diets. Everything is par for the game as disease prevention and management is big money. Governments across the World are trying to do their bit. However, one cannot reach out to every single individual nor can one customize to the last T. This leaves it to us to take care of the health of our near and dear ones as well as of ourselves.

THE PROBLEM

The problem or causes could be many for all of these problems. However, the main is a generally weaker constitution of the population. The inflammation of the immune system then triggers these problems to varying degrees in different individuals. So there is a three-pronged strategy to tackle this problem:

1)     Make sure you do not fall ill by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, diet and exercise.

2)     Assuming you fall ill, do not ignore the symptoms, however minor. It is always the minor unaddressed things which lead to bigger problems, gradually.

3)     Having got some form of illness or health challenge, do no ignore it. Get into a great regimen consisting of lifestyle, diet, medicines and regular habits.

 

THE SOLUTION

There is one solution which takes care of all the three points mentioned above. That is Yoga. Yoga is not just physical asanas or pranayamas (breathing techniques). It involves nutrition (yogic diet), stress management and calming of the mind and the inflammation system. All of these soon take hold and turn around your body, so to speak. It is important to collect information on the same and also try out some very simple things before you opt for a program. One of the best places to check out things which are simple and effective, is wellzee.com. Out here you will find programs to suit every individual by age, sex and problem category.

Furthermore, you will start seeing results in ninety days itself. The longer you practice, the better it is for you. Even the nutrition plans are designed based on yogic principles blended with a modern lifestyle. This is done so that you need not give up any of your favorite foods including non-vegetarian food. Additionally, you have a choice of International cuisines at your disposal for every meal of the day. You will be spoilt for choice and yet remain healthy.

 

THE PROGRAMS

The following are some of the programs you will find on wellzee:

1)     Programs for orthopedic problems like arthritis

2)     Program for Diabetes

3)     High Blood Pressure

4)     Asthma

5)     Stress Management

6)     Women’s Issues

7)     Pregnancy – pre and post-natal

8)     Nutrition plan – whether vegetarian, non-vegetarian or Jain plans.

9)     Customized diet consultation

10)                        Sleep management

11)                        Success management

12)                        Kid’s Health

13)                        Teen Health

TIPS FOR HEALTH

Some of the tips to lead a healthy life are:

1)     Do not have water, cold drinks, juices, alcohol or aerated drinks during a meal or after a meal (for forty five minutes).

2)     Do not have water fifteen minutes before a meal.

3)     With a meal or after a meal, have hot soups, lentils, dals, buttermilk (Chhaas), or warm milk.

4)     Walk ten to fifteen minutes, four times a day. This is better than doing a continuous exercise once a day.

5)     Try and do all your housework on a daily basis.

6)     Practice asanas if you can. If not, then walking is the best exercise to do.

7)     If you want to relax after a meal, lie down on your left side.

8)     If you want more energy, then lie down on your right side.

This and a lot more is what you will find including on the informative blog. You can also ask your questions for free to our experts and get replies. So on India’s Independence Day, get freedom from health and illness.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT DIET PLANS

By Team Wellzee | May 31st, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

ALL ABOUT DIET PLANS

There is a lot of focus these days on eating correctly. The World over, various debates are raging as to what is the correct way to eat. There is constant debate going on especially as to how much carbohydrates, fats or proteins one should eat. There are for and against camps for everything. Add to this various fad diets like ketogenic diet plans, caveman plans and others, and the utter confusion is completed. In all of this clutter, it is therefore, essential to figure out what is important. Let us look at some interesting facts and researches related to diet and nutrition.

RESEARCH AND FACTS

–          There is now no significant evidence to show that having good quality natural fats is bad for health. You can have all milk based products including butter and cheese. The problem with cheese and butter is the quantity of salt in it.

–          Ghee made of milk is superbly healthy and required by the body.

–          Full fat milk is the best, preferably non-pasteurized.

–          Good quality, cold pressed oils are good for health and required daily in small quantities.

–          Palm oil, vegetable ghee and margarine is not so good and needs to be avoided.

–          Good quality fats do not lead to high cholesterol. It is processed foods, sugar, fried food, pastries, refined flours, red meat and excess of grains which causes health problems.

–          High cholesterol by itself means nothing and is not shown to increase the risk of heart problems.

–          Eating ‘non-balanced’ diets in the wrong quantities leads to problems.

–          High amounts of protein are not good for health. If you are having lots of protein, please reduce the same unless you are a body builder or athlete. Most individuals can make do with 15 grams to 30 grams of protein in a day and remain perfectly healthy.

–          Vegetables and fruits are the secret to good health.

–          The body needs all types of nutrients, including micro-nutrients. The quantities vary depending on

These are just some of the interesting facts related to diet and nutrition. There is so much more available, but it is all lost in the clutter of fad diets, doctor’s lobbies, food processing industry, so-called nutrition experts and other vested interests.

THE RIGHT COMBINATION

Interestingly, there is no right combination applicable to any individual. You have to find out for yourself what is the right combination of nutrients to eat. All of these vary between individuals and even for an individual based on the following:

–          Age of the person.

–          Activity levels.

–          Sleep levels.

–          Stress levels.

–          Exercise and physical activities.

–          Nature of profession or job.

–          Season plays a big role in diet. Based on weather and season, your diet should undergo a change.

–          Sex of the individual does not matter much. The only time, nutrition or diet may vary for women is during pregnancy and during menopause. Else it’s pretty much the same for men and women.

So all of this tells us that we need to watch out for ourselves and be observant. Nutrition and diet is more of a process and we need some great guidelines to get us going. The best guidelines about diet and nutrition are to be found on the frequently asked questions section on this site. This will help dispel a lot of myths about eating and remaining healthy through a good diet.

BALANCED DIET PLANS & NUTRITION

Now that we have figured out that we are our own masters so long as diet is concerned, let us start building our own balanced diet plans and eat for good health. To help you with this task, opt for these awesome diet plans. In case you have any health issues, then opt for our customized online diet consultation and plans.

WEIGHT LOSS DIET PLAN

By Team Wellzee | March 28th, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

We are giving below the contours of a quick weight loss plan which you can adopt and adapt to achieve fast and quick weight loss. By fast and quick we mean within 30 days to 90 days only; and that too most of it will be body fat.

DURATION

This diet plan is to be followed for a period of thirty days going up to a maximum of ninety days. However, if you are losing a lot of weight fast, then please revert to your regular diet.

You can also do this plan as one month on and two months off. Do this for 2 cycles or a maximum of six months for adequate, healthy and gentle weight loss.

WATCH OUT FOR

Before we commence on this plan, do take care of the following:

  • You should not have any illnesses, diseases or low immunity problems.
  • You should not be pregnant.
  • Your cholesterol, sugar and blood pressure should be normal.
  • You should not be on any medication.
  • You should be in general good health and should be an adult.

DO’S AND DONT’S

  1. Please ensure you have regular sleeping habits. If not, then please rectify before you start this plan.
  2. Sleep for seven to eight hours a day for sure.
  3. Have some form of exercise, If you do not have then at least start walking regularly. A brisk walk is recommended if you are already not doing any form of exercise.
  4. Avoid late nights and partying (not even once a week).

WHAT TO EXPECT

When you follow this plan, especially combined with exercise; a few things may happen. This does not happen for everyone but can occur in some cases. However, it is nothing to worry about.

  1. Initially, you may find less or little impact for even fifteen days. Do not give up.
  2. Some individuals may experience light loose motions for two to three days. This happens as the body is ‘detoxing’ and cleansing the system.
  3. Once weight loss commences, some very few individuals may experience light fever or flu like symptoms. Rest at this time as the body metabolism undergoes some change.
  4. In a week or two of this diet, you will start feeling very fresh and energetic and be able to do more work. You will feel more lively too.
  5. Weight loss may vary depending on your existing weight, body fat levels and exercise or activity levels.

FOOD RELATED GUIDELINES

The following are some dietary guidelines to keep in mind when you try this diet plan:

  1. Strictly stop all sugar, sweets, desserts, ice creams and sugar free substitutes.
  2. Avoid all processed food, fried food and packaged foods.
  3. Stop all refined flour or maida.
  4. Zero junk food.
  5. Strictly no alcohol for the entire duration. Not even one small drink.
  6. Strictly no fruit juices or soft drinks (not even the zero calorie ones).
  7. Eat whenever you are hungry. We will see below, what you can eat.

YOUR DIET PLAN GUIDELINES

Now we come to the actual contours of the diet plan. This is a variation of a ketogenic diet plan which can be too intense for many. This plan balances well and ensures adequate nutrition balance. So lets dive into it:

  1. Breakfast should be freshly made and consist of high fiber grains or millets, with a large glass of cow’s milk. This could be poha, upma, daliya, oats, bajra, ragi, idli, dosa, chilla, etc.
  2. You may also have eggs with the yellow, but no bread.
  3. With breakfast, have a teaspoon of organic coconut oil.
  4. Make sure you have breakfast within a maximum of an hour of waking up. The earlier the better.
  5. Mid morning snack will be a handful of nuts and a seasonal fruit. You may have a green tea with it if you want. Alternatively, you can have two cooked egg whites made in butter.
  6. If you are hungry before lunch, have fresh coconut water or a glass of buttermilk (chhaas)
  7. For lunch have only lightly cooked green leafy vegetables with paneer or chicken (if you are non-veg). If you do not have paneer or chicken, you may add cheese to the dish. You can cook the vegetables, paneer or chicken in butter, cow’s ghee or peanut oil or sesame oil. Use less masalas and condiments.
  8. With lunch have a watered down chhaas or a soup.
  9. You may feel hungry after a couple of hours again. Have a fruit, coconut water, some paneer or two egg whites.
  10. Have a small evening snack consisting of some chana (roasted gram) OR citrus fruits with a teaspoon of coconut oil and a green tea.
  11. Dinner will be the same as lunch. A soup with green leafy vegetables and paneer, chicken or cheese cooked in oil, ghee or butter.
  12. If hungry before bed, have a warm cup of cow’s milk.

Now try this plan and get explosive fat loss. This diet has been found to give rapid and powerful weight loss. The best part is that, it cuts down body fat much more than muscle or water. So what are you waiting for? Go for it.

Do let us know if you want a customized diet plan. 

INTERNATIONAL WOMAN’S DAY

By Team Wellzee | March 6th, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

Background for Woman’s Day

The World over and for many centuries, women have had to bear the brunt of a large part of all problems. There are multiple roles women play and have always shouldered much more responsibility than men. There are also some physiological differences and more importantly; physical, social and mental problems let loose on them by a primarily patriarchal and male dominated society. Given a lot of these challenges, women still play the leading role in maintaining societies and families. In fact, contrary to popular belief, most women in South Asian Countries and Africa do more physical work and are the sole bread earners for the family. There are many parts of India, where the men just while away their time and women actually run the house.

Problems Faced By Women

Due to a lot of these historical and warped religious reasons and beliefs, women actually face a lot of problems. Some of them are:

  1. Earning a living and managing a house
  2. Rearing and raising children
  3. Managing family security
  4. They bear the brunt of violence, wars and diseases
  5. Rapes, torture and more
  6. Female infanticide
  7. Genital mutilations
  8. Various other social pressures
  9. Keeping women uneducated
  10. Physical ailments which men do not get like PCOS or PCOD, menstrual problems, sex related incontinence, weight loss or weight gain problems, metabolic changes, menopause and more.
  11. Most of these lead to a lot of stress in women and cause diseases like breast cancer, cardiac problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, thyroid problems, orthopedic problems and much more.

It is therefore, important to take care of all women in all age groups if we are to have a healthy society which is mentally and physically secure, free and strong. Towards this end, there are a lot of people who are working and contributing.

However, the onus is on women themselves to take care of their health and well being more than anyone else. There are just three steps to this. If we take care of these, then most of the problems get taken care of. The three steps are as follows:

Diet And Nutrition

Diet and nutrition is not about diet plans and weight loss programs. It is about eating healthy and balanced meals at all times such that you get all the essential nutrients. The nutrient requirements are slightly different for young, growing women, women in child bearing age and for women after menopause. Nutrition also helps to prevent and manage breast cancer and other serious problems.

To find out the best balance diet plans for women, you will require some online diet consultation or plans. Opt for them from wellzee.

Stress Management

Stress management is the core area for all women today. If you manage stress well then everything gets taken care of. You will find the best stress management technique on the youtube link given below. In case you want a complete stress management program, then you can get one on this link.

Exercise And Yoga

The third most important aspect for women’s health and well being is to be physically active and fit. Physically active does not necessarily mean a lot of exercise at a gymnasium or strength training. There are many ways to remain active and fit. This can be done in any one of the following ways:

Check out the link below for a quick and simple online yoga asana program without any payment.

In case you need a proper extended online yoga program and guidance then feel free to write to us or take one of our yoga programs for women.

THE LACTOSE INTOLERANCE MYTH

By Team Wellzee | February 4th, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

What Is Lactose?

All kinds of food categories have sugars of some type which are unique to that particular food type. The other fact is that the body also converts all food into sugar to either use as energy or to store it as energy. To give an example, fruits have fructose in them, corn has corn starch and similarly, other foods have other types of sugars. Sucrose and glucose are other such sugars. Just like these foods, milk also has a type of sugar compound called, Lactose. This lactose needs to be broken down in the body to be absorbed and used. This task is done by an enzyme called Lactase. After Lactose is broken down, it is absorbed by the blood and transported where required.

What is Lactose Intolerance?

We have the ability to process lactose. This ability varies with age and metabolism. So most of us can actually process this and use it. However, a very tiny proportion of people have a condition known as lactose intolerance. This means that either there is a deficiency of the lactase enzyme or there is incorrect absorption of lactose even though there is enough lactase. The main symptoms which could be seen are bloating, gas and mild diarrhea. These are also symptoms of excess protein consumption or even some bacterial infection.

Myths About Lactose Intolerance

What has been found is that even if someone has an incorrect lactose absorption problem or a lactase deficiency, it does not mean that you necessarily get these symptoms. There are many other dependent factors due to which one can develop this intolerance:

  • The amount of milk or dairy products you have in a day. If you are having lots of it, then a problem could occur. However, if you go easy on the cream and cheese and just have small quantities of milk a couple of times a day, nothing may happen.
  • The form in which you have the milk or milk products matters a lot. It has been found that you can have buttermilk (chhaas) or fresh yogurt or skimmed milk and there is no problem.
  • One of the main culprits is soft processed cheese. The variety you find in sandwiches and pizzas. So processed cheese is avoidable. However home made cottage cheese in small quantities does not cause an issue.
  • All the milk and milk products these days contain contaminants. Contaminants are not just chemicals but also hormones given to livestock to increase production. Even if the fodder has pesticides or fertilizers, it finds its way in the milk and then our body, when we have it. These contaminants also trigger intolerance.
  • The age of the individual matters. With increasing age the lower should be the proportion of plain or raw milk. If you just add some water to the milk before having, then this problem disappears.
  • Another problem is excess protein. Having more protein than the body needs has similar symptoms as lactose intolerance. Just reduce or cut out non-vegetarian food rather than milk. This is because milk is significantly more healthy than meats. However, we tend to do the reverse. We do not reduce protein from food and then blame the milk. Also stop or reduce protein supplements if you are having excess protein.
  • There is also something known as a milk allergy. This is completely different from lactose intolerance.

Myths And Disinformation On Milk

There is suddenly a whole ‘anti-dairy’ lobby coming up which is pushing down the problem of lactose intolerance on the World. This is happening due to a few reasons:

  • There are various business interests and lobbies at work, especially the meat and processed meat industries. Milk is the only great vegetarian substitute for meats and all the essential nutrients. If you convince people to not have milk, consumption of meat goes up.
  • There is a genetic aspect to it as well. Members of the caucasian race are more prone to lactose intolerance and that too in small numbers. However, as discussed, this is also aggravated due to meat proteins.
  • Since most of the research has been done in the west, the same concepts are peddled to other races. To push down this concept on other races and countries, therefore, is strange. You will rarely find South Asians with lactose intolerance or milk allergies.
  • Further, the way dairy is primarily consumed in the West is also an issue. India or South Asia primarily has milk, buttermilk (chhaas) and home made yogurt or curds. The west is mainly focused on processed cheese, butter and cream. The latter does cause digestion problems.

There is another interesting aspect found. Milk given by indigenous Indian cows is lesser in quantity but is the most nutritious and healthy without any side effects. So do not worry at all. Go ahead and have some milk (watered down a bit if you will), buttermilk (chaas) and home made dahi or yogurt (curds).

Combine these with a healthy lifestyle and a great online yoga program or balanced diet plan from wellzee for good health

THE GLUTEN INTOLERANCE MYTH

By Team Wellzee | February 2nd, 2016 | LEAVE A COMMENT

 

Digestive Disorders On The Increase

There are many health challenges we face these days. There are many reasons for this. Sedentary and irregular lifestyles are the main causes. These include minimal physical activity, impaired sleeping patterns and wrong eating and drinking habits. The digestive orders are of many types. These are minor digestive problems, enteritis, gastro enteritis, gas, bloating, acidity, constipation, gastric ulcers, loose motions and IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). Along with this we also face increased waist lines and other related lifestyle diseases.

Reasons For Digestive Disorders

There are so many causes for IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and all other digestive disorders. Many of these are listed below:

  • If we are stressed, our digestion goes for a toss. If we keep getting stressed for longer periods of time then our digestion capacity is impacted over the long term, causing related problems.
  • These days we out frequently. We pick up bugs and bacterial infections which impact our digestion. If we eat out too often then it can cause long term problems.
  • We eat a lot of processed, packaged and pre-packaged foods. Even though a lot of them claim to be healthy, there are always some additives or processing by-products which impact digestion.
  • A modern day life also prevents us from eating freshly made food. As a result, we land up eating stale food on a daily basis. Leftovers are kept in the refrigerator and re-heated and eaten. TV dinners are becoming more of the norm and one has time to cook fresh food for every meal. All this stale food is not good for the body.
  • Most of our food and drinks these days (including milk and drinking water) contains preservatives, hormones, pesticides and additives. All of these cause digestion problems.
  • We all tend to have little or no physical activity. In fact more and more people these days do no physical work. Most of us do not even exercise. However, we keep eating in the same way. This lack of physical activity or regular exercise is one of the main causes of digestion problems.
  • The trend these days is to eat a lot of heavy foods which require the digestive system to work harder. These include non-vegetarian food like read meat and sauce laden foods and curries, baked breads, pastries, sweets, processed cheese, fried foods, refined flour, junk food, burgers, pizzas, lot of sugar and so on.
  • We tend to have a lot of beverages like tea, coffee, alcohol, soft drinks and energy drinks. All of these are unhealthy and upset the digestive system completely.
  • One of the lesser known reasons for digestive problems is irregular or less sleep. We seem to be not only sleeping late but sleeping for lesser number of hours. Sleeping correctly, is therefore becoming core to proper digestion.

The Gluten Intolerance Myth

Now we have seen so many reasons for digestive problems and IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). Then how does gluten enter in the picture at all? Everyone talks about Gluten intolerance. When we talk about gluten intolerance researches are incomplete and biased. More often than not, they show only one side of the story.

We say one side of the story because gluten free products, gluten free wheat and other related products cost at least two hundred to three hundred percent more than regular wheat and other products.

The other fact is that gluten intolerance is a very minor problem. It only affects a miniscule amount of the population and that too, mainly in Caucasians. So what we have done is to generalize a non-existent problem for the whole population. This has been done through some smart marketing by the American processed food industry.

This has been spread so smartly and without any scientific research or basis; that the whole world is now running around to go ‘gluten free’. This is another myth like the ‘fat is bad’ marketing and the cholesterol myth. There is no basis to this. How people actually get affected by wheat or gluten is as random as tossing a coin and the outcome is less than one percent. More than ninety nine percent of people are not impacted at all. So the question we must ask is, why should we stop something if it does not harm us?

Even in people whom some such problems are seen, are not caused by gluten or wheat. The main reasons as we have already seen are incorrect and excess eating, processed foods; chemicals and hormones present in the grains, milk, water and other products. It has been found that if you just reduce grains and increase vegetables and fruits, the problem gets resolved on its own. It is probably only a very tiny percentage of the population which has a genuine gluten problem.

Gluten Researches

There are so many ‘credible’ researches done on Gluten intolerance. However, these do not take into account all factors like lifestyle, stress, food habits, exercise, differing metabolism, genetic and racial factors and so many other variables.

There are also other recent surveys and researches done by credible organizations and individuals which clearly state that there is no so such thing as gluten intolerance IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) caused by gluten in a majority of cases. Rather, it is a combination of all the other factors as already stated above.

What Is The Problem With Wheat?

Wheat causes a problem when have it in large quantities or products made of wheat which are ‘dense’ in nature. Refined and processed versions of the wheat also cause a similar problem as have gotten rid of the healthy fiber.

To give an example, baked breads will cause a problem, but the Indian ‘phulka’ or fresh chapati is very healthy. Both are made of wheat. This is because phulka is light and cooked through properly. Similarly, if you have pasta made of wheat, it may cause digestion problems because it is processed and very dense. But upma or ‘daliya’ (always freshly made and normally had as breakfast in India), made of cracked and broken wheat, called Suji, is healthy. Therefore, this does not cause a problem. This logic holds true for all grains and pulses. If we eat a lot of baked or ‘dense’ food or large grain based quantities, it will cause Irritable Bowel Syndrome and other digestive problems.

So the problem is not the wheat or the gluten in the wheat. It is the way we eat it and how much of it we consume.

The Main Solution

The solution to these problems is actually very simple. Improve your lifestyle and exercise or walk regularly. Reduce the consumption of all grains a little bit, and not just wheat. Eat more freshly prepared food and vegetables and avoid re-heated or outside food. Additionally, learn to sleep well with our sleep program or you can take our online balanced diet plan and learn how to eat more healthy