Dietary Guidelines for Indians

I am a follower of the Chef at Home (CAL) blog/facebook group. I was checking out their server revamp and clicked on this link: http://www.chefatlarge.in/health/nutrition/how-should-indians-eat-64674

The page has a table (which I hope they revise soon) - (Table 1 in this blog, page 86 in the NIN Report pdf) that shows amount of calories and recommended portion sizes. Now, it is to be used in conjuction with another table.. (see Table 2 here, Page 117 in the NIN Report pdf)

Table 1: Shows portion sizes of balanced diet. There are multiplication factors to be used for adults. Typcally 4 for adult males and females. Can go up to 6x for moderate exercising folks, by 11x for heavy exercising people.  Don't starve yourseve on just 4 g of sugar per day. It it good to reduce it to that much though, if you can! :) 

Table 2: Balance diet for adults depending on activity levels (multiply the g/portion with numbers under the Men or Women). For e.g ~20 g of sugar for sedentary male, can be increased to 24 g sugar for moderately active male.

For the actual example of a guideline diet as a food  pyramid see:

I should definitely thank Sid and Sanchita for posting this at CAL. However, I thought the numbers were too low so I decided to go to the source document once these questions came up in my mind.. 1) Meat substitute: Now, did they also have an option/guidance for people on substituting the 50 g meat with anything else.. ie is it just more pulses or split half in leafy veg and pulses?

They actually discuss this as guideline with pulses first and then ask non-vegetarians to replace one serving of pulses (~30-50g with a serving of meat). Page 87 report pdf
2) Sugar and oils for daily basis are much higher in our diet so this is interesting. Sugar just 5 g per day?? See answer to Q 3 below.
3) Third.. was this for normal, office going, sedentary type person ? This is answered well in page 86 in the report pdf

For e.g ~ 15-20 g of sugar for sedentary, can be increased to 24 g sugar for moderately active ((my assumption) ie. 45 min exercise per day x 5 times a week) and 44 g for heavy exercise (athlete type people, or (my assumption) if you exercise over 75 mins X 5 times a week )

4) Any difference between male adult /female adult mentioned in guidelines? Covered in Table on page 86 in report pdf.

Ok, it is also interesting that in their detailed document they basically say "Abstain from alchohol" -- haha..no mention of moderation or anything.. Page 73.. (they actually say refrain from excessive drinking).


I might update more, but this is a quick post! http://ninindia.org/DietaryGuidelinesforNINwebsite.pdf

List of Helpful Yoga Poses for Common Illnesses

Sinusitis
Yoga Poses
One website that carries a list of useful yoga poses and other natural techniques that help in preventing common illnesses is the Health and Yoga site. Note that this site lists many techniques that may sound completely new to you. In such a case, locate a trained yoga practitioner in your neighborhood and consult with them accordingly, before proceeding into any self directed program.

Another book that is titled "Yogic Cure for Common (sic) Diseases" also provides information relevant to diet and health. [In "indian english", the author means illnesses, not really 'diseases'.] The interesting part is that this book actually links abdominal disorders to sinus problems and recommends the same diet for both (no fried foods, avoid milk, less spice in food, etc.) This book carries a recommended meal plan (bkfst, lunch, snack time, dinner) with detailed list of items to eat and to avoid. It is a short book divided into multiple illness-related chapters, so it is a quick read.

A link to the book on Amazon.com's website can be found on the left hand side of this post.

Nasal hygiene
The other important tip towards avoiding sinus problems is nasal hygiene. Since the nose is the filter for all the air we breathe, excess mucus needs to be removed from the nose. (Some amount of mucus is normal and needed for keeping the nasal air passage moist and well lubricated.) This book as well as my yoga teachers from India have recommended a procedure called Jalneti Kriya, which is basically saline irrigation of the nose. For the past few years I have been (irregularly) rinsing my nose with either a neti pot or the Neilmed bottle. Penn state's UHS pharmacy as well as the local CVS pharmacies carry this item.

Neti pot video.

Herb Supplements & Other remedies

Quercetin, Bromelaine. Usually avaiable as a combination at Whole Foods, Nature's Pantry (penn state area).

Wellness.com's review on bromelaine

Acupuncture: This is out of my league, but I should give credit to the acupuncturist (Daniel Greenberg) of my friend who told me about quercetin and bromelaine.

Naturopathy: Black pepper smoke inhalation, munching a few kernels of raw black pepper first thing in the morning help clear sinuses. Extremely risky, do not attempt unless you love black pepper.