Dr. Mahalakshmi

'By giving up our power 
We begin to empower'

"Why are you so shy
So quiet so meek"
"Go out, be social
There's so much to seek"

"You hardly ever sit still
And then you ask for a break"
"You really need to buck up"
"Be serious for heavens sake"

"You still can't read"
"You refuse to write"
"Going at this rate
Your future isn't bright"

"What do I do with you 
I haven't got a clue"
"You drive me mad"
"You make me feel blue" 

"You eat and stuff too much"
"You don't eat at all"
"You are so tiny"
"You are too tall"

"Your spellings are so poor"
"Your memory is so weak"
"You suck at maths and science"
"Your future is too bleak"

No matter what kids be
No matter what they say
They never seem enough
And they must always obey

We threaten, we control
We bully and blackmail 
We punish, we abuse 

We assume we know better
We say its for their good
Unknowingly, in many ways
We scar their childhood 

We expect so much from them
To win and succeed
We turn them into robots
To their dreams we pay no heed

We expect, we judge
We project and we shame
All the joy and spontaneity 
We kill, as we tame 

What if we let them be
Take many steps back
Create a space of allowance
And cut them some slack

What if we truly listen 
To their ideas, their dreams
And let them take charge
However crazy it seems!

What if we stop instructing
The talking down, the preaching
What if we let them learn at their pace 
Stop pressurizing, let go of teaching 

What if we could be kinder
More caring, more present
What if we do what nourishes
Create memories that are pleasant 

We are not responsible 
For how they turn out to be
Give their life back in their hands
They will shine, you shall see.

As experience teaches us, 'sin is indeed tempting'. You are aware of the ways in which your health and quality of life would improve and similarly attentive to factors that can harm your biological system and yet you give in to the trap of temptation. Not just once, but repeatedly. Processed food can be extremely injurious to your general health.

A huge mass of people have processed food items after being familiar with its ill effects. The reason propelling them to do so is perhaps the good taste and easy accessibility of these kinds of food. They live up to your cravings at odd hours and are extremely satisfying.

Kinds of processed food you generally intake:

1. Snacks to savor: Binge eating can make you have some of the savory snacks. In the middle of the night, you might want to munch on chips, flavored and coated nuts or on microwave popcorn. These packed snacks may have dangerous effects on a person's health and hence, should be avoided.
2. Processed meat: Bacon, salami or corned beef should be strictly kept away from as they include the threat of artificial hormones.
3. Veggies in a tin: Tinned or canned vegetables could be a feasible option in your fast paced life, but it clearly is not good for your health.
4. Carbonated drinks: Carbonated drinks are enjoyable but they do interfere with a person's physical fitness.
5. Instant noodles, soups or other meals: Ready mixes and packed noodles seem to be a simple way of making tiffin or an evening snack, but the health hazards they cause should alarm you. Processed food items such as these can lead to cancer as well.

Natural food substitutes that can be equally gratifying:

1. Boiled potatoes sprinkled with cucumber, tomatoes, chili flakes and salt should always be preferred over potato chips.
2. Consume fruits, especially citrus fruits regularly. Try to maintain a safe distance from packaged fruit juices as they contain preservatives and a great deal of sugar.
3. Tofu that is made from soya is high in nutrients and should be a great substitute for chicken nuggets.
4. One can deal with his or her cravings for mayonnaise by switching to hummus. Though the two food items don't taste the same, hummus doesn't contain animal fat that is actually harmful when stored or preserved.