Roti vs. Rice- What should you have your meals with?

The nutritional conflict between rice and roti is age-old, as primary staples of every Indian cuisine.  White rice and wheat chapattis are both infused with considerable amounts of protein, calorie, fat as well as fibre. This overlap makes it tougher to choose just one as an accompaniment with your meals.
The health-conscious can take a sigh of relief with this list of effective benefits of the two. Let’s pit them against each other!

#1: If you opt for a lighter meal…Choose rice!
Boiled white rice is easier to chew and digest as it is low in fibres. For those with issues of diarrhoea, colitis, an upset stomach or morning sickness, rice is a favourable choice. If you are suffering from chronic gastrointestinal distress, rice is recommended for you.
Tip- You can consume a bowl of steamed rice with sautéed vegetables for a wholesome meal!

#2: If you are looking for muscle growth…Choose roti!
Rotis is the best food accompaniment for vegan and vegetarian bodybuilders. At home, you can mix variants of whole grains to harness the benefits of calcium and other minerals. Wheat chapattis made of whole grain consist of complex carbohydrates that boost your energy.
Tip- For reducing your portions, have two servings of roti (without ghee) with a large bowl of home-cooked yellow dal.

#3: If you have a heart condition… Choose rice!
For you to keep your heart healthy, the consumption of rice is vital. Brown as well as white rice is full of fibres and high in magnesium, niacin, phosphorus that can prevent heart problems.  Rice helps you in lowering bad cholesterol levels.
Tip- Substitute your regular white rice in the khichdi or biryani recipe with brown rice. (Contains fibrous bran and germ layer)

#4: If you want to feel fuller… Choose roti!
For weight watchers, who want the feeling of satiety for longer period should include rotis in their meal. Wheat rotis take longer to digest which helps in maintaining blood sugar levels. This quality also makes it a good alternative for diabetic individuals. Wheat rotis are nutritious and contain vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6 and B9 that help in keeping you strong.
Tip- While kneading the wheat dough for the rotis, you can add soya powder to increase its protein content.
To escape the dilemma of choosing between these two healthy and tasty staple sides, try switching to whole-wheat rotis and brown rice. Savour both, guilt-free!

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'Consult'.

 Roti vs. Rice- What should you have your meals with?

8 Foods To Never Eat Before Bedtime
    
Hunger before bedtime is common esp. when you are used to staying up late. The craving to eat something before going to bed makes a person consume anything that is available. Bedtime hunger is not wrong, but there certainly are foods that shouldn't be consumed before going to sleep as they can create health issues. 

Avoid these 8 foods before going to bed.

1. Dairy fat - Having calorie rich cheese or butter for dinner or even before bedtime ensures that your digestive system is going to have a hard time at the night, thus disrupting your sleep.
2. Caffeine - Caffeine from the coffee doesn't let you sleep. It is used to kick our sleepiness so it should never be consumed before bedtime.
3. Spiced/Oily foods- Spices cause flatulence and oils lead to indigestion, ensuring incomplete and disturbed sleep.
4. Red meat - Dinner should always be the lightest meal of the day. If you make your digestive system work heavily overnight, it’s difficult for you to get sound sleep! Red meat being a very heavy, must be avoided to ensure a good night’s sleep.
5. Beans- Beans before bed simply fastens the process of flatulence! Avoid it to have a trouble free night.
6. Sugars- Sugars give you instant energy. That’s exactly what you don’t need before a good night’s sleep so avoid it before bedtime.
7. Aerated drinks- These drinks have acidic content with a lot of sugar and caffeine. Drinking them can destroy you sleep for the whole night so keeping it for the day is wiser!
8. Alcohol- Alcohol makes you drowsy and in a way bogs you down. But that’s really not the kind of sleep you’d like to have. Avoid alcohol to invite the perfect sleep!

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'Consult'.

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8 Foods To Never Eat Before Bedtime

Vitamin D is a crucial vitamin that is soluble in fat. Vitamin D is essential for the growth of your bone and it ensures increased flow of calcium into your bloodstream by promoting the process of its absorption from the consumed food. Poor concentration of vitamin D may result in the development of rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. Vitamin D is important in maintaining the immunity of your system; deficiency of vitamin D gives rise to a number of health problems including cardiac disorders, arthritis, hypertension, diabetes and even cancer.

Daily exposure to mild sunlight helps to synthesize Vitamin D in body. Dietary sources include milk, cod liver oils, fish, meat, fortified dairy and food products.

The most reliable way to diagnose the deficiency of vitamin D is through blood test; it is the most effective method of measuring the level of vitamin D in your blood. The following are some dominant symptoms of vitamin D deficiency:

Influenza: According to studies, vitamin D acts a guard against the attack of a number of respiratory infections which are widespread in children. Hence, lack of vitamin D in children is responsible for the development of various respiratory tract infections and diseases.
Depression and Schizophrenia: The root cause of depression and various other psychiatric disorders have been linked to deficiency in vitamin D. It is extremely important for expecting mothers to maintain a sufficient level of vitamin D in their body, during the gestation period to reduce the risk of delayed brain development and other mental ailments in the new born babies.
Cardiovascular disease: Cardiovascular ailments are more prevalent among people, who tend to suffer from vitamin D deficiency. Patients who suffer from cardiac discomfort have responded well to vitamin D treatment.
Asthma: Intake of vitamin D supplements reduces the severity and discomforts that are associated with asthma and have also shown considerable reduction in the occurrence of asthma attacks.
Periodontal disorders: Lack of vitamin D may result in the formation of numerous harmful bacteria in your mouth and may give rise to several oral discomforts in form of painful gum inflammation, bleeding and loss of tooth. Vitamin D aids in the formation of cathelicidins and defensins, which are effective in maintaining the overall oral health.
Cancer: Types of cancer including prostate cancer, breast cancer and colon cancer are linked with Vitamin D deficiency. Supplements of vitamin D are helpful in controlling the growth and development of breast cancer, especially the estrogen sensitive breast cancer.

Vitamin D Deficiency - 6 Signs That You are Suffering from it 

Kissing your loved one not only feels great but also is phenomenally great for your overall health and wellbeing. Did you know that deep kissing can boost your immunity, reduce your blood pressure and can help in maintaining your physique? Kissing has some surprising health benefits you would not have known. Read on to find how kissing ensures a healthier lifestyle for you.

1. Burns calories
Kissing is known to increase your metabolism rate up to 2 times more than usual, thus helping you to burn more calories. In fact, studies suggest that kissing your partner for more than 1 minute can help you burn almost 25 calories. 

2. Lowers stress
Kissing can be a great stress buster as it is known to reduce levels of cortisol,  the stress hormone,  in your body. Kissing also helps in boosting your immune system and as a result aids in overcoming post-work exhaustion to a great extent.

3. Ensures more sexual pleasure
Kissing has positive effects on your heart as well as self-esteem, and it is also usually the first step towards sexual intercourse. Kissing also plays a vital role in foreplay, and hence makes sex a more pleasurable and enjoyable experience.

4. Strengthens the bond of love
Research shows that couples who kiss more often and whose kisses last longer may have a better relationship. Kissing helps in increasing the connection between two individuals and ensures the partners of each other s feelings of commitment and compassion, which consequently helps in building a stronger and long lasting bond.
 
5. Makes you happy
Endorphins are known to be the hormones responsible for happiness. Locking lips initiates the release of endorphins, which make you feel happy. Studies suggest that kissing helps to curb depression better than psychologist treatments or anti-depressants.

6. Reduces pain
Engaging in a heated kissing session triggers your body to release adrenaline, which is known to reduce pain. 

7. Gives you healthier teeth
An intense passionate kiss results in more saliva secretion in your mouth. Researchers are of the opinion that this helps in washing away plaque from your teeth, resulting in less cavities, and whiter and healthier teeth.

8. Tightens your facial skin
A kiss requires the use of almost 30 muscles of your face together. This ensures a workout of your facial muscles and keeps them strong for a long time, leaving you both with a younger look and feel.

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'Consult'.

Checkout 8 Surprising Health Benefits of Kissing!

Changes in the colour of your urine can reveal important information about your health. If your urine takes on a hue beyond what's normal, it can be indicative of something wrong with your health. In general, the normal urine colour varies from pale yellow to deep yellowish-brown, which is a result of a chemical pigment in the urine called urochrome.

1. Red or Pink

- When your kidneys, urethra, bladder or any other urinary tract organ gets infected or inflamed, blood cells get leaked into the urine, giving it a red hue. The causes behind the presence of blood can be urinary tract infections, kidney cysts, kidney stones, enlarged prostate and even cancer. Taking blood thinners can also cause you to have blood in your urine.
- Certain foods like blackberries, rhubarb and beets can cause your urine to turn pink.
- The use of certain medications like a particular class of antibiotic used in the treatment of tuberculosis can turn your urine red. Likewise, a drug used to numb discomfort in the urinary tract can cause a red/pink discoloration of your urine.

2. Blue or Green

- The consumption of coloured food dyes containing green or blue pigments can cause you to pass urine of such hues.
- Certain anti-depressant and anti-inflammatory medications can turn your urine green/blue.
- A very rare medical condition called familial benign hypercalcemia (fbh), characterised by high levels of calcium in thE blood and low levels of the mineral in the urine can cause your urine to turn blue.
- Green urine can also occur if your urinary tract gets infected by the pseudomonas bacteria.

3. Dark Brown

- Having large amounts of these foods - aloe, rhubarb (a type of leafy green) and broad beans can cause you to pass dark brown urine.
- Certain anti-malarial drugs, laxatives and muscle relaxants can darken the colour of your urine as well.
- Dark brown urine can also be caused by disorders of the kidney or liver as well as infections of the urinary tract.
Injury of the muscle as a result of excessive training can result in dark brown urine.

4. Orange

- Problems with the bile duct (the duct through which bile from the gall bladder and liver passes before entering the duodenum) or liver along with the passing of light coloured stools can result in orange urine.
- A cause of orange urine may also be dehydration as fluids bring about a decrease in the concentration of compounds present in the urine.

5. White

- The presence of calcium or phosphate sediments in the urine can give it a white hue.
- White urine can also be a result of funguria infection (a form of fungal urinary infection wherein the fungus produces white sediments) or a bacterial infection.



What the Colour of Your Urine Says About Your Health?

Cow Milk vs Buffalo milk - Which is healthier for you?

We can differentiate between the milk from a cow or a buffalo by looking at its color and thickness. While being different from one another in terms of composition and richness, both cow and buffalo milk possess properties that give them their unique nutritional value and health benefits. Including them in your daily diet can help you to stay fit and strong. Here's a look at what they offer, and which one can be the most appropriate for you:

1. Fat content - It's the fat content of these two milks that instantly make them different from one another. Of the two, buffalo milk has a higher percentage of fat content, which keeps your stomach fuller for a long time. On the other hand, cow's milk is easier to digest due to its low-fat content. When it comes to the fat percentage in buffalo milk, on an average it is two times more than that of cow milk. So, if the average fat content in cow milk is 3-4% that of buffalo milk is about 7-8%.

2. Protein content - Buffalo milk contains more protein in comparison to cow milk, which can make it more difficult to digest. It comes with a protein content that is in the range of 4.2%-4.5% and is 11% higher than that of cow milk.

3. Cholesterol content - Cholesterol levels differ in both the milk, with buffalo milk being significantly lower in cholesterol. While buffalo milk has a cholesterol content of 0.65 mg/g, cow milk records 3.14 mg/g of cholesterol.


4. Water content - Cow milk reports higher water content compared to buffalo milk. This is because it contains fewer solids with about 90% of the milk being composed of water. It's this high water percentage that gives cow milk its hydrating quality.

5. Calorie content - Since buffalo milk comes with more proteins and fat, it has more calories. For every 100ml of buffalo milk, you consume about 100Kcals. On the other hand, cow milk contains about 70 Kcals.

If you're on a diet to lose weight and improve your metabolic processes, cow milk would be the most appropriate option as it is low in fat, protein and calorie content. On the other hand, if you want to gain weight and strengthen weak bones, buffalo milk is what you should have daily.

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'Consult'.

Cow Milk vs Buffalo Milk - Which is More Healthy?

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