Nutrition From Chile To India!

A country of Latin American origin spanning three continents - South America, Oceania, and Antarctica - phytosanitary island, protected by natural barriers - the Pacific Ocean, the Andes Mountains and the Atacama desert - and a global leader in exports - CHILE has come to India with the proposition to enhance exports of kiwifruit native to Chile to various marketplaces in the India.

Chile has a distinction of being the longest country in the world and also the southern hemisphere's largest exporter of fresh fruits because as many as hundred countries receive thirty different species of Chilean fruit grown across a variety of climates and regions.

Apples, berries, citrus fruits, peaches, plums, and grapes are cultivated across the varied demographic of Chile all year round. During the last season Chile exported close to thirty thousand tonnes of fresh fruit to India, thus positioning it among the Top 5 countries in Asia for Chilean exports.

India's growing love for fruits like Kiwi stems from the fact that we've developed a liking towards tropical produce that enables us to savor the best from the global platter whilst keeping our health in check.

To facilitate the presence of Chilean Kiwi in India, the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association has joined hands with the Chilean Fruit Growers Federation (FEDEFRUTA) further cemented by the the financing by Ministry of Agriculture of Chile and support from the commercial trade wing - ProChile.

Apart from dignitaries representing the above alliance, also present at the occasion were Padma Shri Chef Sanjeev Kapoor and nutritionist Kavita Devgan who were quick to point out that fruit can be equated to snack, and a healthy one at that.

Kavita also added that kiwifruit is a berry good fruit for us, as it is a powerhouse of essential vitamins, anti-oxidants, and folate, added to the fact that as a fruit, kiwi is alkaline in nature, thus balancing our intestinal pH.

Additionally, Chef Sanjeev also took to whipping up a refreshing concoction of kiwi, mango and honey - a kiwi fruit smoothie - to exhibit the culinary versatility of the fruit.

On the whole, the Chile-India association is a pleasant one and shall be a well-received one too.

Catch Up, Buddy!

Growth, be it personal or professional, is an individual's sole motive. On the personal front, it may be about maintaining amicable relations with near and dear ones, while on the professional front, it may be about realizing that we do not lead our lives as a black box, that we have to keep others in our tow and proceed towards the pinnacle of success - be it psychologically, emotionally, or even financially.

When it comes to one's bodily growth, it is not the unprecedented growth left, right and center, which concerns parents of adolescent or pre-pubertal kids who have turned couch potatoes, but it is the genuine scaling on the growth chart as per the standardized norms propagated by doctors worldwide, that causes anxiety to the parents of such kids.

While there may be many reasons to such a barrier uprooting a child's self-esteem, the most important and the one most overlooked, happens to be carelessness towards what's on a kid's plate conjunct with limited physical activity.

When I was a kid, we had ample green spaces to run around and play, oblivious to first-world issues but that isn't the case now. Today's kids have increasingly become lovers of gadgets of all kind and form, thus restricting their physical energies to one or the other smartphone or tablet, most often.

Not eating right - be it eating excessively or eating the least - affects the bodily rhyme and rhythm to growth and adversely alters the natural patterns to growing right. A balanced meal consisting of the right quantities of the six nutritional elements to the food pyramid - namely proteins, vitamins, minerals, fibre, carbohydrates, and fat - would contribute to the happy and healthy growth of a child, stage-wise, that is right as per the time duration attributed to each stage.

If all these growth patterns are thrown off their set rhythm it detrimentally impacts the child, not only physically, as is evident on the outset of it, but also emotionally, throwing their self-confidence and sense of self-worth off-track big time.

Hence, it is of utmost importance that a child does not lose out on, or imbalance his/her growth patterns, be it due to any reason whatsoever, as this issue would then, not remain confided only to the child themselves, but also reach out to their peers. Then, would be unleashed the real demon, as peer pressure would cave into the child, to upset him making him hollow from the inside.
This demon can then never be driven away, as it chooses to reside inside the child, developing in him, an inferiority complex forever.

Fortunately, I had attended the product launch of Horlicks Growth+ in May, this year, which helped me to realize that this issue impacts children all over the nation, and is very much prevalent.

Horlicks Growth+ as a product, was then suggested as a clinically tested solution to this problem, in the form of a flavored health supplement which was suited to help kids aged 3-9 years who were below tenth percentile as per the growth chart and standardized norms.

It also made me thank God that I was born and brought up in an environment which enabled me to keep the issue of catching up on lost growth at bay.

Would You Balance Or Crash Your Diet?

Ever since we were kids, we have been taught the importance of adopting a balanced diet in our daily lifestyle.

Children have been made to understand how significant it is to have three square meals in a day, which are rich in a variety of nutrients, vitamins and minerals so as to aid proper development of their bodies and to keep all types of deficiency diseases at bay. 

As alluring as junk food items are, and as yummy as they may seem to be, the taste of these fast-food items is what weighs heavy on the health of an individual. Junk food is said to be devoid of all nutritional content, while being high on the taste factor, just like sedatives which degrade the health of an individual. 

It is no wonder then that there are news bulletins being televised proclaiming how many kids fall prey to this evil monster of ill-health every other day and are thus affected by obesity, hypertension and all other such diseases which could be life-threatening in the long run. 

On the other hand, there are some fitness freaks too, who end up pursuing crash diets to attain a fitter and more desirable body shape. Although these sort of 'one step solutions' seem miraculously ideal, they end up having an even more adverse effect than the former on the individual's health! 

Well, of course excess of anything is bad, but the same goes for deprivation also! These crash diets aim for rapid results in a short span of time, which in affects the body, because it does not get enough time then, to adjust itself to the change in food habits! 

While crash diets end up relying only on a certain food group for a certain period of time.  As most of them are very monotone and severely restrict the calorie intake, crash diets can be a pain to sustain oneself. 

Moreover, you may also take up various risks if you decide to embrace a crash diet. The slowing down of your metabolism, loss of muscle, weakening of the bones, potentially leading to osteoporosis, deprivation of essential nutrients, weakening of your immune system, cardiac stress and heart palpitations are some of the many risks which come attached with the label of crash dieting!

Having said that, I rely on a natural product to keep a check on my weight. Honey has helped me over the years to see that I sustain my body shape at least, if I am unable to reduce my weight. 

Who better than Dabur to trust for providing me with the sweeter and healthier alternative of adopting a Honey Diet so that I don't end up eating all bland food, while my taste buds crave for something yummier! :) 

It is because of honey's inherent purity and goodness, that it is endowed with various vitamins and minerals, along with the requisite amounts of iron and calcium. I can say #HoneyDietIsHere and honey is a sweeter and healthier alternative for all of us. :)