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How healthy is the Indian cuisine?
2020-10-23
Indian cuisine has gained popularity throughout the world. In almost every country, you can find an Indian restaurant or a one that offers an Indian cuisine. Not only does the Indian cuisine have fans worldwide, even many Indian people who compare Indian cuisine with the world say they find Indian cuisines better. The reasons behind such a popularity is thought to be the mixing of different spices giving us the taste combined with the variety of vegetables increasing its nutritional value. But exactly how healthy is the Indian cuisine? Considering ourselves to be Indian, we tend to love each aspect of the Indian cuisine. Questioning our own ways of living could be frowned upon by others but answering this question could provide us with some crucial answers about our lifestyles and how we can align them with our personal health and wellbeing.
<h2>Indian food from the health perspective</h2> <p>At some point in our lives, all of us get concerned about our own eating habits. Our focus usually is on what all we need to cut down (usually junk food) and what all we need to eat more (fresh fruits and vegetables).</p> <p>We can even visit a dietician or nutritionist, but the advice given to us would be according to our own personal health issues. The question about the general public health and how it is affected would still remain to be answered.</p> <p>So what if we find out more about the Indian cuisine? We would certainly come to acknowledge some new details and how these details would have been missed out in the general <strong>‘dieting and exercising</strong>’ approach.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Is-Indian-food-too-oily.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <p>Considering the lavish use of oils and fats in our cooking and preparing methods, many<strong> dieticians</strong> or <strong>nutritionists</strong> would call it a more fatty diet. Not to forget all the carbohydrates from rotis and rice. But if you look closely, Indian foods are more nutrient rich as compared to the other cuisines since they are made by using a larger variety of natural ingredients obtained from many different types of plants.</p> <p>A study conducted at the Indian Institute of Technology supports this fact. In that study, examination of as many as 2,500 traditional Indian dishes was conducted and the findings were better than expected.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Can-Indian-spices-serve-medicinal-purposes.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <p>It was discovered that the combinations of ingredients was specifically designed to serve a medicinal purpose rather than a culinary one. This can explain why certain Indian foods give us that “feel good” factor and even remove symptoms such as sadness, stomach upset, cold and fever. Yes, or cuisine has therapeutic effect.</p> <p>Following an Indian diet could even keep you healthy while following the “<strong>best weight loss program”</strong> available to you. This is because the Indian diet containing essential nutrients keeps the body from getting nutrient deficient even when consumed in lesser quantities. Let’s explore these characteristics of our Indian cuisine and reach a more concrete conclusion.</p> <h2>Out of the box combinations</h2> <p>Looking upon the ways in which spices are used, Indian recipes do stand out from the rest of the world. The studies have found out that the use of spices in the Indian cuisine defies the common culinary principle of food pairing which suggests pairing of items based on similar flavors. Instead, most of the Indian recipes use spices and ingredients that have a negative food pairing with each other.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/How-are-Indian-spices-used.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <p>In terms of biological phenomenon, our tongue tends to sense more of the change of a food item rather than the quantity. So, the use of such combination of spices stimulates our tongue, giving the Indian dishes a taste that seems to make the other cuisines bland for us Indians.</p> <h2>The tingling spices</h2> <p>We can all agree that Indian food cannot lose its spiciness. After all it is what makes us want to have more of it. But is this spiciness healthy for us? Yes, besides giving the Indian cuisine its unique taste, many of these spices are known to be super foods.</p> <p>Other than just the nutritional benefits, some of these spices can even produce effects on your body such as heating effects, which can help you out in the cold weathers. Such spices are having sufficient amounts of collagen, gelatin, and minerals which can be combined in certain proportions to help you really beat the cold.</p> <p>Many Indian recipes which have fiery chili peppers as one of their ingredients not just add to the taste of the food, but are also known to elevate mood and increase energy levels in you by stimulating release of endorphins inside the body.</p> <p>Not just stopping there, some of the most used spices have benefits deserving a special mention. Here are the benefits of some of these spices:</p> <h2>Turmeric</h2> <p>Turmeric is known for its anti-inflammatory effects on the body. It contains an ingredient ‘curcumin’ which boosts natural metabolism, reduces pain and acts as an anti-septic. In addition to this, it has anti-carcinogenic properties which can help in reducing the risk of cancer. It is also beneficial for the people in their later years as it is known to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Benefits-of-turmeric.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <h2>Garlic</h2> <p><strong>Garlic is especially beneficial for people having a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases as it can lower the levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and increase the level of good cholesterol (HDL).</strong> Other than this, it is also known to have strong anti-fungal, anti-viral, and immunity-boosting properties.</p> <h2>Green Chilies</h2> <p>Green chilies can help fight free radicals as they contain high amounts of anti-oxidants. Free-radicals are known to be cancerous when present in high concentrations in the body. Green chilies are also known for boosting immunity and being an anti-aging agent. Capsaicin present in chillies reduces inflammation. Containing high amounts of vitamin A and C, chillies are good for eyesight and overall health</p> <h2>Cardamom</h2> <p>The fact that cardamom can treat gastrointestinal problems like colic, constipation, and diarrhea is not just a popular belief but also backed by scientific research as well.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Benefits-of-cardamom.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <h2>Ginger</h2> <p>Supporting the health of the digestive tract as well, Ginger is a herbal remedy for providing relief against nausea. It is also good against inflammation and pain.</p> <h2>Preparation styles</h2> <p>Considering the preparation of the vegetables and fruits in Indian recipes, many of them promote the use in their freshest forms as opposed to the multi-processing approach in different cuisines. The cooking is also done in such a way that the dishes retain their freshness and nutrients. You can therefore, even think of eating the Indian recipes while following any <strong>“weight loss plan”</strong> which demands daily consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables.</p> <h2>Desired proportions</h2> <p>Coming to the composition of nutrients, the Indian recipes include a desired proportion of carbs, proteins, fats and fibers that your body demands. Traditional Indian meals include a perfect combination of all the nutrients which your body needs to carry out its daily functions.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Having-Yogurt-with-meals-helps.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <p>The habit of eating yogurt along with the meals is also known to be beneficial for us. It contains healthy bacteria that helps in digestion and promote healthy conditions inside the digestive tract. It also prevents insulin resistance which can help reduce the chances of diabetes and coronary heart disease. As suggested by many dieticians and nutritionists, Yogurt also has a high calcium content which preserves the health of bones and teeth and keeps us from gaining excess amounts of body fat.</p> <h2>The use of Ghee in Indian Food items</h2> <p>Many of us would consider the addition of “Ghee” to be the cause for unhealthy touch given to Indian delicacies. But, the truth is that Ghee in its purest form extracted from milk is a very important ingredient from the health perspective as it supplies a good amount of fat soluble vitamins, protein and calcium.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img title="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" src="http://www.drmorepennow.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Consume-ghee-in-its-natural-form.jpg" alt="best weight loss programs, best weight loss treatment" /></p> <p>The only trouble arises when the ghee used is that which is available in the market as commercial ghee. It is composed of vegetable fat that contains high amount of Trans-fat. The Trans-fat is bad since it is not easily processed by the body and thus increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.</p> <p>Along with this, most of the oils that we use today, are hydrogenated fats or saturated fats that are as problematic as the commercial ghee. This explains why we need to avoid the consumption of foods having an excess of these types of oils and Ghee.</p> <p>So, before opting out for a consultation from your dietician or nutritionist, or reaching out for the <strong>“best weight loss program”</strong> or <strong>“best weight loss treatment”</strong> available in your area, look out at your own eatin</p> <p>g habits and see where you can trade those choices for junk food with those of eating our own traditional <em>healthy Indian recipes</em>.</p> <div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style addthis_32x32_style"> </div>