After an unexpected social visit or shopping spree I can return home in time for lunch with a smile. “How convenient!” my mother would say. In her times, either she had to prepare the lunch for the entire family or cook it after a hurried outing or even better, she would skip the visit! I would just come home and heat up some ready-to eat delicacies and have a sumptuous meal. Recently, I began to think about the effects of this genre of food on health. This made me think. Are they really bad?

Processed Food : An Observation

In the grocery stores out there, we find a whole section dedicated to processed food. Processed foods have been altered from their natural state to increase their shelf life and for ease. This technique evolved and got promoted as a result of urbanisation and resultant hectic life style. In the present scenario, people like me can’t imagine a week without dried noodles or canned fish.

How it changes the whole of life!

It helps people who can’t get fresh food and refrigerate it. You don’t remember seasonal foods anymore. Any food item is made available all around the year by food processing. Food processing also enables the market to have variety. The grocery shops are not going to look nice if food processing is stopped.

The methods of processing include canning, freezing, refrigeration, dehydration and aseptic processing. The use of preservatives like antioxidants and antimicrobials to increase the store life of food is not uncommon. If you believe that consuming processed is totally unhealthy, then you are mistaken.

Not all kinds of food processing are harmful to health. Some food items gain edibility and nutrition after getting processed while some need processing to retain nutrition. Tinned fish and pasteurized milk are instances. Except for those who prefer raw milk, pasteurization kills bacteria and homogenization prevents the fats from separating.

Vegetables do not lose anything when frozen. The minerals and the vitamins remain fresher in them than in the ones available in the market. The vegetables do not reach the market the day when they are picked and by the time they reach the destination they may end up losing their nutritional content. Through processing, provisions like bread and breakfast cereals can be given more minerals and vitamins. In any case, the human body will not retain any unnecessary vitamin or mineral. Sugar, oil, pulses and grains get their edible form through processing. They are again processed in the making of bakery products, dairy products and packed foods.

Dangers of Processed Food

The tendency to consume these kinds of food is ever on the increase. But one has to know that though they fill the stomach and quench hunger they do not give the body and its immune system their regular share. Processed meats amplify the risk of colorectal, kidney and stomach cancer. They are often simply saturated fats and salt with just preservatives and flavouring agents. They do not contain much of protein, minerals or vitamins.

Carcinogen

Doctors relate the reason for the leaping number of cancer patients to processed foods. Carcinogen is a substance that promotes cancer. It seems to be omnipotent by being present in asbestos, radon, certain pesticides, arsenic, tobacco smoke and food stuffs. Foods cooked at high temperatures are susceptible to carcinogen due to certain chemical reactions. In eatables like fried potatoes carcinogen is found in potential amount. Hence the French fry scare!

Acrylamide

Forms of acrylamide present in heat–processed food is another concern. Acrylamide is a chemical used to make polyacrylamide materials which in turn is utilized for the treatment of drinking water. WHO says that acrylamide, if taken in can cause and damage the nervous system. Acrylamide is born in foods when processed in high temperatures especially for long duration. This is seen in higher levels in potato fries while breakfast cereals, biscuits, cookies and snacks and even pop corn. WHO adds on some more alarming information. Acrylamide is also found in home-made food as well. WHO further warns us that food should in no way get overcooked. (I also read that Acrylamide in these proportions is not dangerous! But I I go with WHO)

Preservatives

I am not sure whether they mean when they say ,“no preservatives”.

Some of the food preservatives used are Sodium acetate, Sodium nitrite and Sodium metabisulphite. Taurine, glucuronolactone and caffeine are introduced in energy drinks and fizzies as stimulants. Lalala! Disodium inosate and disodium 5-ribonucleotide do the flavour part. Needless to say that these chemicals and stuff are not going to be very friendly to the body.

Sodium

Processed food (frozen dinners) and soft drinks contain a good amount of sodium. Sodium chloride (salt) is used for preservation of food as it checks moisture and prevents the growth of bacteria.

We should think healthy first. Let’s look for foods that are free from trans-fat, low in sodium and calories and those made of whole grain.

-Aparna K V

Tags: Natural Cures, Natural Remedies, Kitchen Tips, Ayurvedic Medicine, Herbal Supplements

Urotherapy: A boon

Our body is a factory in itself. Once food is provided, it is broken down to absorbable nutrients, converted to energy and other simpler forms and even medicines are produced in our own body. Yes, soon there would be a time when we wont need medications in forms of tablets and syrups, our own body is a drug house producing one. We are only to realize the medicinal properties of the body’s product…the urine.

This may sound absurd but the fact is that urine has been found to contain medicinal properties to treat many diseases and disorders. Now we know why the great Indian leader lived as long as 99 years healthily and actively. The secret is that he used to drink a glass of his own urine every day. Yes, urine is no more a smelly waste but should be perceived as a product formed by the kidneys containing hormones, enzymes and urea in water. The composition of urine is around 95% of water and the rest is in form of urea and salts. Urine is infact a sterile product which is most safe for human consumption. However, it has the ability to encourage microorganisms to flourish and hence should be consumed fresh only.

The urine is known to stimulate the immune system of the body. The immune system recognize the foreign substances in the body and fight them by producing antibodies which react against specific foreign bodies called antigens. Hence the infection or disorder is treated by the body itself. The reason why urotherapy or consumption of urine accelerates antibody production is that in the diseased state, antigens are present in urine too. So, when these antigens are taken in the body, the response is further strengthened and many more antibodies are formed. This principle is used to treat many illnesses like flus, common cold, arthritis, diabetes, psoriasis, hepatitis, herpes, allergies, adrenal failure and even cancers.

In a cancer patient, the malignant cells have a characteristic to divide and multiply at a fast rate. The clusters of these malignant cells give rise to tumours and also help in diverting oxygen and nutrients to the malignant cells. The urine of the cancer patient avoids these cancerous cells to form clusters and hence interferes in their growth. Another study says that the urine rectifies the genetic material and composition of the cancerous cells and converts them to normal cells.

Though urine is a sterile liquid, it is a practice to consume one’s own liquid. There are reasons for the same. The most important is that the body has to recognize the liquid as its own and any urine of other source is foreign for the patient’s body. The intake of urine begins from a few drops daily and is slowly increased to a glass. Other forms of urotherapy could be by enemas and injections into the blood stream. Since the same is also proven to provide antiseptic and hydrating action, it is also shown to have good results on the skin. On account of the same, urine can also be a component of many face creams and lotions. Many anti ageing creams today and anti acne treatment ointments can comprise of human urine.

So next time you discard your urine, think again !

Tags: Kitchen Tips, Natural Remedies, Herbal Supplements, Natural Cures, Ayurvedic Medicine

Do you have the “Leaky Gut Syndrome?”. You can find out, if you have Candida by filling out a simple questionnaire here.

To explain further, Candida is a fungus which survives on “dead” energy. In Ayurveda, we call this “dead” energy as “Ama” which displaces the vital energy in the body. So Candida, promotes the leaky gut by growing into the walls of the intestine causing them to be permeable. Ofcourse, the underlying major cause is taking improper foods, combining them improperly and taking them at the improper times.

Since Candida thrives on “Ama” (The dead energy), we should attempt to correct our digestion and eliminate the “Ama”. In absence of the “Ama”, candida cannot survive and hence the problem is solved. Digestive Fire, or Agni, plays a very important role in boosting our immunity, and enhancing our “ojas” or vitality.

So the first things you should look at, are - a) correcting the digestive functions b) detoxifying your liver. Balance your Pitta Dosha. Take Cooling herbs, teas and foods.

We have compiled a very good report for Candida and Yeast-Infected who can find :

• Relief within 20 minutes, and full relief within 12 hours
• How to avoid futue Yeast Infections
• The foods that are causing Yeast Infections.

Download this report here

Regards, Puneet